Danganronpa: Salty Waves and Bloody Coral
by Prince PokePersona
Summary: Ever had dreams of waking up underwater? Swimming with the fishes seems like fun, but not to a young boy with amnesia and no clue of what's going on. Alongside a motley group of strange people called "Ultimates" it's up to this boy and these strangers to uncover this ocean mystery..will they succeed...or will they drown in a void of their salty tears under the sea? (SYOC CLOSED)
1. Prologue: Wishy Washy Memory

**Editor: Crimson Spider Lily**

* * *

Why is everything so dark?

Why does my body feel so cold?

Where am I?

Am I….dead?

The soothing melody of what seemed to be ocean waves and the harmonious rhythm of the aquatic life lilted me into a comatose state of slumber. I felt both relaxed as well as uncomfortable, two things that didn't really bode well together. It was a very puzzling feeling, mysterious and enigmatic in nature.

I slowly opened up my tired eyes, which shuddered rapidly, almost as if they were adjusting to the new change in lighting in the room. I eventually awoke from whatever drugged state I was in and found myself somewhere unfamiliar and unknown, almost alien to me as a whole.

I rubbed my head weakly, brushing my skinny fingertips through my messy hair and massaging my forehead and temples softly with careful strokes. A sharp pain throbbed in my head, almost as if someone hit me in the back of my head with a hot frying pan or some blunt metal object. The seething pain was unbearable and made just looking around the area a chore in of itself with how how many times I squinted from pain.

My mind was a blank slate; hazy and wiped of anything that I could vaguely remember. I didn't really know who I was or why I woke up in this strange room I'd never been in before. I don't even know how I got here in the first place. It felt like a dream that never ended, but I wasn't sure if this was reality or some fictional world I made up in my mind.

I rubbed my eyes, opening them slightly as I got a hazy picture of how the room I was in looked like. It was very simple in design with nothing much of note that would have caught my attention.

The floors had dark aquamarine tile pattern and felt cold to the touch, like freezing metal. I spotted a bed with purple covers in the far right side corner of the room, with neatly folded blankets tucked into the corners and a fluffed white pillow inside of a silk violet pillow case over. I also saw a full sized brown oval shaped mirror in the left corner of the room and next to it was a closet built into the wall. The walls were a plain light blue pattern with some weird fish-like decals plastered onto the wall in many exotic colors and hues, but it was too hard to make out due to my blurred vision and sore headache.

Finally getting some of my senses back slowly, I felt my body laying on the cold floor, trying it's very best to move and help me ascend upwards to prevent hypothermia. My body quivered like a leaf as a cold shiver spider-walked down my spine. Moving a muscle was painful, almost as if there were a thousand needles sticking into my skin. I was able to get myself up to a waist-level seated position. I rubbed my shoulders, trying to get some warmth going through my system, as I noticed that I wasn't wearing any clothes, save for a black and purple pair of spotted briefs that was kind of loose fitted.

"Huh...wha?" I shook my head a little to get my mind up and running.

I touched my pale skinned face, turning my body around and spotted something that took me completely by surprise. As I looked up, where the ceiling should have been, I realized there wasn't none as a dim light peered into the room. I squinted my eyes, hoping to avoid getting another headache from the light above and the view that I saw was both breathtaking and astonishing to say the least.

Instead of a solid opaque ceiling, there was a clear glass alteration with what looked to be a clear view of some type of underwater ocean life, similar to that you'd see in an aquarium at a theme park.

The water's rich azure colors shone brightly and magnificently, despite the dim lighting. The crystallized sparkles radiated against the glass, refracting some artificial light into this tiny room. I spotted a few sea creatures such as fish of all shapes, sizes and colors swimming above my head, all passing without a care in the world and with a dead stare in their black soulless eyes. Green seaweed and multicolored coral rested neatly next to underwater rocks and pressed against the glass ceiling snugly; almost knocking on the glass and trying to break through with little success.

"W-What is going on?" I asked, hearing the meek, soft spoken tone in my voice, "W-Where am I?"

I then tried moving my legs, shaking them awake and feeling the pins and needles on my feet and the blood rushing through my veins slowly as I shuddered. It was a very cruel and sickly feeling as I felt my body crying out in pain from the sudden jolt of movement and circulation throughout my system. It was like marching up a tall rocky hill, using only sheer willpower to maneuver your body upwards, it was a task in of itself just to move around properly.

I shakily rose to my feet, my legs wobbling as if they were made of jelly and my body swayed randomly, feeling too weak to respond to the sudden stimulation it was receiving after a long slumber. Standing was difficult in the sense that I felt like a newborn infant. It appeared my body forgot how to balance itself on two feet as I ended up leaning on one of the walls, fumbling my way to the mirror trying my best not to trip over.

"Oww….oww.." I winced in pain, the sharp stinging in my feet growing intensely with each cold footstep, "W-Why is this s-so hard…"

I slinked slowly towards the full-sized mirror, pressing the right side of my body against the oddly colored wallpaper as I felt a colder sensation tingle on my already shivering pale skin. I didn't know which felt worse: the pain of getting up or the pain of walking a simple short distance to another part in this small room.

I made my way to the mirror and once my feet had adjusted to standing up properly,I blinked a few times and looked at myself in its reflective gaze, getting a closer image of what I really looked like.

My black raven hair was short and looked almost unkempt with how many strands kept sticking up and off to the sides of my head, along with a few locks of hair swept to the sides near my ears. My sleepy, sad hazel colored eyes had a few black bags underneath, indicating a lack of proper sleep and grogginess. I was very skinny, but not the appealing or attractive kind; I was gaunt, scrawny and had an unhealthy complexion to my pale skin tone. I had no muscle mass or defining tone on my body and my overall facial features looked round but almost angular in shape as I looked at it from both sides. I was barely naked, bar for the aforementioned black and purple spotted underwear I was wearing. Even though this was who I was, I felt almost uncomfortable staring at myself in the mirror, as if I saw something horrifying in the reflection. I wanted to avert my eyes, but I took one more look at my figure reluctantly.

"W-Why am I n-near n-naked?" I wondered timidly, rubbing my cold stomach, "W-Where are m-my clothes?"

Looking deeper into the mirror's glass, I spotted a wooden table desk in the back corner of the room, as well as a few particular items resting on top of the table. I turned my body around and limped weakly to it, trying my best to keep my balance while wobbling like a mannequin doll on strings.

I made my way to the desk, resting my arms on the edges of the hard, polished countertop and eased my body onto a nearby wooden chair, which had intricate carvings indented in the sturdy frame.

"Strange….w-what are these?" I pondered, observing the weird items on the desk.

The items in question consisted of a square brown, blank picture frame with no picture inside, a small blue notebook with a black cow outline on the front cover and two black ink pens resting next to the notebook, a dark purple, black and white patterned owl shaped backpack made for little kids resting on the side of the table next to the drawers and lastly there was a set of neatly folded clothes resting on the opposite side of the desk next to the notebook.

"A-Are these m-mine?" I tilted my head in confusion, bewildered by the mysterious items laid out for me.

I perused the contents of the notebook and noticed it was blank, having no words written inside as I flipped through the pages and coming across nothing. However, what was the most bizarre item out of the bunch was a stuffed toy, that of a teddy bear resting next to the notebook.

The teddy bear was a light brown color with its fur feeling soft to the touch as I held it in my hands. I noticed that, wrapped around the bear's neck, there was a dark purple ribbon fashioned with a cute little glittering purple bow on the front. The bear's stomach was a dark pink color along with the inner paws and to finish off the almost adorable design, the bear's eyes were a dark chocolate brown color almost as lifeless and empty as the fish's eyes.

"W-Why is t-there a teddy b-bear here?" I asked myself, holding it in my hands and staring at it intensely, "Why d-do...argh!?"

As if on cue, another piercing headache entered my head, making me drop the teddy bear onto the floor as I recoiled painfully. I clutched tightly at my head, almost pulling at my hair and felt a rush of emotions pervading my mind and filling me with a somber sense of dread and anxiety. It was a rollercoaster of disheartening emotions and I was too paralyzed to stop it.

"Oww!" I yelped in pain, "W-What is this!?"

After a few minutes of what seemed to be murderous torture, a sudden realization washed over me like a crashing wave. The endless pain ceasing for a short moment as a bout of clarity escaped from my lips.

"I-I remember…" I mumbled softly, "M-My name….is.."

I slumped over in my seat, my body trembling and debilitated with each failed attempt at movement. As I was on the verge of passing out, I muttered a few words, while the rest were too indistinct to make out, I was able to hear these specific ones.

"Kazumi….Toriyako…"

After that, my hazy vision blurred and the room started to grow darker and darker. My body slipped off the chair as it thudded loudly against the cold hard tiles. My eyelids grew heavier as I closed them weakly and passed out from overall shock.

* * *

 **A/N** : Hello hello hello lovely people, and welcome to the reworked and finalized edition of Salty Waves and Bloody Coral. YAY! It's finally here, after so long QwQ. It's been an arduous struggle, but I did it guys, I finally got this all sorted out. Are you all proud of me?  
*crickets chirping*.

All jokes aside, I am so happy to announce that Salty Waves is out of submission hell and I can finally say that it's here to stay after such a long wait and a lot of drama. This was one of the hardest decisions for me to make regarding my stories, but overall, it was worth it.

For those who don't know and are new to this story, here's a little bit of context for as to why this story got reworked and why the cast is already sorted:

Ever since making this second story in my saga, I've been a bit overambitious and a little too hasty when it came to getting cast submissions. I can fully say that I was a bit of an excited fanboy and got a bit more than I bargained for in terms of characters. As a person who is very passionate about Danganronpa as a whole, the reason I made this second story as well as my third story, Laughable Rejects, is not only because of that passion, but because I love to write.

As a writer, I take my writing and my OC making very seriously. However, I always look for ways to improve upon both aspects. After meeting and making a few new friends online and raising my standards, I can say I've kind of grown a little as a fanfiction writer, which doesn't say much since I've been only doing this for two years as of this posting XD.

But down to the real meat of the issue with this story. Now that I have a more keen eye when it comes to OC making and writing, I've been reading a few more stories and came to a shocking realization that some creators have recycled OCs and sent them into my story without notifying me of their status.

I will not name these creators, because I don't encourage people to go out and attack other people for stuff like this, but I will say that these aforementioned creators have disappointed me with their dishonesty and their deceitful submissions. I know I haven't been strict on this before, but when it comes to my stories, I take them very seriously and since they are connected and in the main canon of Danganronpa, recycled OC don't really work if they're seen in multiple stories etcetera.

Since one of the recycled OC was potentially going to be the mastermind of SWBC - not going to say who it was since they don't deserve that recognition -, I had to remove them from the cast and rethink my entire order of events on who dies and who lives. So yeah, that was kind of a kick in the teeth moment for me, very cathartic but relieving that I found out before it was too late.

One creator even decided to boldly resend an OC who was in the original SWBC cast lineup to one of my friends' stories, to which I am glad that they told me when that happened. For me that was the final straw, since that person had no excuse for recycling since they knew my story was being reworked and potentially knew about the constant updates since my story was on the top page a few times, as some of you might have noticed these past few months. So yeah, that was very eye opening for me.

That being said, if the OC was rejected or the story was discontinued, I will give some leeway if you show me proof that the story isn't running anymore and that you have contacted the author about it beforehand. To those people I won't hold that against you, I like giving people second chances and who knows those OCs might be interesting to write in future stories.

For the people who have resent their OCs to other stories, have OCs that have died or were accepted into other stories and are trying to get a different outcome for their OC, that is beyond disrespectful in my opinion (unless the author states they allow recycled OC, in that case, this doesn't apply to you). It's not only duplicitous to me, but to the other authors you entrusted with your OC and to write to the best of their ability. If you're unhappy with your OCs outcome, then tough luck, we don't always get what we want and complaining over a fictional character in a fanfiction story, berating the author for taking creative liberties or re-sending them to other stories really says a lot about you as a creator.

Forgive me for potentially scaring off people due to my sort of aggressive tone, but that's just how I am as a writer. If you can't commit to my stories then I'm sorry, I can't help you out there. I've been manipulated and used in the past before and I draw the line when it comes to something I hold dear to my heart and pulled me out of a depressive state in my life.

Now that that's all squared away, I am finally happy to announce that SWBC is finally going to be posted and have regular (ish) updates. Since I'm juggling three main stories as well as an AU story (which is more of a side project I can update whenever) I think I have a lot on my plate as we speak XD.

I will not start another new story until one of my other stories is close to completion and if you're interested in the other stories I have mentioned on my profile, then shoot me a PM and I will make those forms available to you or you can ask me on Discord, just let me know what your Discord link and account name is in the PM and I'd be happy to help you out.

Enough of my annoying rambling, I am happy to announce the finalized and new cast of Salty Waves and Bloody Coral. It consists of old and new faces, so I hope this is okay. Out of the 20 something plus OC I have received, this is the final roster.

* * *

 **NEW SWBC CAST LIST** :

 **MALES** :

Kazumi Toriyako - Ultimate ? (Me!)

Dragomir Kita - Ultimate Zoologist (tobi-is-an-artist-too)

Wayne Fukumoto - Ultimate Knitter (JessJess1818)

Terrence Hill - Ultimate Communicator (EskiLobo)

Yoshikazu Aomori - Ultimate Auctioneer (Lupus Overkill)

Sakai Shojiro - Ultimate Hairstylist (ninjedi)

Sato Shizuo - Ultimate Lifeguard (KISL)

Akio Ito - Ultimate Gambler (alucard deathsinger)

Torakusu Chihiro - Ultimate Sniper (Shyjoker)

Kimiya Iwasaki - Ultimate Ice Sculptor (Crimson Spider Lily)

Lev Moroz - Ultimate Fashion Designer (RubyLeo)

 **FEMALES** :

Yumeji Motome - Ultimate Oneirologist (mayurie)

Lou Kiko - Ultimate Roleplayer (R3dLuvSingin)

Aphrodite Zhang - Ultimate Pageant Queen (legna wsit)

Nomi Hitomi - Ultimate Gardener (ninjedi)

Vivienne Morris - Ultimate Trader (Knight Hospitaller)

Ushio Isobe - Ultimate Surfer (zephryr)

Takara Hamasaki - Ultimate Sailor (Abitat Eco)

Moriko Ishii - Ultimate Doll Maker (SanityRequiem)

Stella Belvedere - Ultimate Pub Manager (TheRoseShadow21)

Iena Kaya - Ultimate Judge (Ziggymia123)

 **OTHER** :

Astatine (AI) - Ultimate Ethical Hacker (YellowTheWriter)

* * *

If you guys notice some new faces to the cast, I will say that this is now a twenty-two person cast. I know, I am such a mad man XD. I will admit it was a little difficult choosing which OC was good for my story, but in the end this is the end result and I hope it's okay.

To the creators who have stuck with my story since the beginning and their OC are original, I commend you and thank you for all your love and support, you don't know what it means to me that you trust me even with all the tiresome updates and constant jumping to the top of the website XD. Thank you all so much.

Also to the people who sent me the new OCs, I thank you too as well. I loved your OC and I hope to portray them to the best of my ability in this new updated version of my second story. I loved each new submission and I hope to make you guys proud X3.

Enough of those cheesy sentiments, I hope you all are doing well and thank you once again for supporting me with my shaky uploads and clunky schedule. I know my writing isn't really as good or is posted as often, but I hope it's alright.

I hope you all have a lovely day, night or whatever holiday it is you're celebrating and I will see you all in the next update or whenever I decide to upload next. I will say that posting for this story will be fun and challenging, so wish me luck XD.

As of this posting it's almost close to Christmas, so Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all and I hope you have a good few weeks off from school or work X3.

Happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alike. I wish you all the best and I will see you guys next time! Bye bye!


	2. Prologue: Salty Character Intros Pt 1

**Editors: Pain X65, Crimson Spider Lily & SanityRequiem**

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 _"You'll never amount to anything you little shit…"_

 _"Why are you such a baby... you need to grow up and stop acting like such a pussy…."_

 _"No one wants to be around someone as spineless as you…."_

 _"What a little girl….can't even fight his own battles….fucking wuss…"_

 _"Everyone hates you…..you're just an obstacle in their way…."_

 _"I wish you were never born…"_

* * *

I felt nothing but cold darkness wash over my skin, as I felt the chilling breeze caress my face as I winced from the ensuing pain that travelled slowly up my spine. My entire body was numb and I felt like the intense pressure from the entire world was pressing itself against me like one giant metal weight.

I don't really remember much after passing out for a brief moment, but I vaguely remember waking up in a strange room with an aquarium like aesthetic. I remember the sounds almost vividly, the gushing bubbles that passed upwards to the surface, the passing by fish that swam by carefree and the scratching noises coming from the coral attacking the glass wall.

"Ugh….w-what is g-going on…" I sleepily remarked, opening my eyes slowly, "So bright….i-it stings.."

I managed to open my eyes slightly, only to be instantly blinded by the clear white light appearing from above me. I shakily nudged my arm, hoping that it was awake as I barely managed to get it a few centimeters off of the cold hard floor that I was laying on. I cringed in pain as trying even to move around comfortably was painful, almost as if someone was stabbing me with a knife every time I tried to move an inch.

"Y-You can do this…" I unconvincingly tried to motivate myself, "C-Come on…"

As much as it hurt, I bore through the immense pain and was able to propel my body up slowly, even if I felt like a wobbly piece of jelly attempting it. Even sitting was tiring, but I managed to get my body to a waist level position, hovering my arm over my eyes to protect it from the harsh rays of light peering in from above. I felt like a shell of a person, without a skeleton to support myself, I felt limp and unstable.

"W-Where am I?" the few words that escaped my mouth were the most important ones I've spoken since awaking in this place.

I perused my surroundings, taking one more look at where I ended up. As I recalled from before I fell face first on the floor, this was some sort of room, maybe a bedroom of sorts. I spotted the bed with the purple covers and pillows resting in the corner, the built-in closet close by, next to the full-sized mirror and that prominent desk with the miscellaneous items resting on top of it. I took one more look to the ceiling, after my eyes had adjusted to the unusually incandescent lighting in the room. Despite having seen it already, I was still baffled and astonished by the glorious view in front of me; it was breathtaking.

A clear picturesque image of crystal blue waters swishing against the glass ceiling and sloshing around as a few wave crashed could be indistinctly heard in the distance. The bright neon colored fish passing overhead were alluring to look at, almost hypnotizing in a sense as each one glittered the ocean with an array of color as their scales reflected off the white light coming from above. The green seaweed contrasted harshly with the light blue color of the pristine water and the kaleidoscopic colors of the coral that decorated the exterior of the ceiling, accentuated the water's mysterious yet calming allure.

"A-Am I in a-an aquarium?" I wondered to myself, musing over the thought briefly, before suffering a small headache, "Agh….I need to s-stop laying around...I need t-to get out o-of here…"

I then tried moving my feet around to position them to stand up, before realizing that the pins and needles in my feet hadn't subsided as I gritted my teeth in sheer agony.

"Agh!" I winced in pain, shaking my leg awake.

I continued trying to move around, bearing with the immeasurable pain and trying again in my attempt to stand up. I placed my pale feet onto the aquamarine tiled floor and felt the cold surface jolt my feet awake as I managed to stand up slowly and unsteadily.

"W-Woah!" I fumbled around, swaying randomly as I pressed up against a nearby wall, "T-That was too close for c-comfort…"

The left side of my body pressed smoothly against the walls of the mysterious bedroom as I felt the brisk sensations crawl slowly up my spine, while I embraced the chilling temperatures with a grimace stuck to me the entire time.

"I need to f-find out w-what's g-going on," I mumbled to myself, heading over to the closet, "B-But first...I need to find s-some clothes…"

I nervously looked down and noticed that I was still half naked, wearing only the aforementioned purple spotted black underwear. I slowly trudged over to the wall closet and felt my legs slowly giving away as I managed to make it a few feet to ward it. I pulled it open as my hand cramped up slightly from the simple tug.

"O-Oww…" I cracked a few fingers, hoping to get some blood flowing through, "I h-have to do this…it's too c-cold in here…"

I mentally steeled myself and persevered, pulling open the closet door with a considerable amount of force as they swung open easily. I almost knocked myself back into the nearby mirror, but I regained my uneasy balance and inspected the closet's contents in front of me. The odd thing about it, aside from the fact there was even anything inside of it, was that there were multiple articles of clothing, all neatly organized and all from the same make and brand. Even stranger, they were all the same outfit with not much difference between the suits of clothing.

"Oh well….it's b-better than f-freezing to death.." I muttered meekly, shakily reaching for a shirt.

The closet was filled with a few items that included a silk purple button down dress shirt that I immediately put on without hesitation as I slowly felt the warm fabric touch my skin, fitting perfectly.

"W-Why do these c-clothes fit me p-perfectly?" I questioned that idea, as I don't remember wearing them before or even seeing them in my life.

Shrugging off the thought, I grabbed a few more articles of clothing such as a pair of neatly pressed black dress pants that reached to my ankles, black socks that stopped at my ankles, a pair of black and purple sneakers that looked to be about my foot size, a dark grey knitted sweater that I put over my shirt and I slowly started to feel warmer and warmer by the second.

"It f-feels like a soft b-blanket…" I hugged my body to get some friction going through my system, "W-Who left me t-these?"

After buttoning up my shirt, adjusting the coat over it, zipping up the pants and lacing up my shoes, I felt a bit more comfortable and less sickly. I noticed that there were a few more items inside of the closet that looked to be accessory sets of sorts to probably compliment my look.

There was a maroon and dark blue striped bow tie that looked to be already tied and clipped together and what looked to be a pair of hair clips that were fashioned into the outlines of a silver star and a silver crescent moon. Unsure of what to do, I took the accessories and put them on my person, neatly fixing the tie around my shirt collar and placing the star outline clip on the right side of my head and the moon outline clip on the left side of my head.

"I-I'm not sure if t-this is right….oh well," I sighed deeply, accepting the gratuitous accessories and stepping over to the full-sized mirror to look at myself better.

My messy raven black hair were still swept from side to side, but the hair clips pulled back some of my bangs and made my hazel sad eyes look a bit bigger and rounder. The dark ensemble, accompanied with the purple attire, made me look like some kind of gothic librarian. I didn't really have any complaints with how I was dressed; I didn't have any other choice than to wear what was presented to me.

"I look a bit b-better...I don't look like a f-freak.." I mumbled to myself, noticing my appearance in the mirror, brushing around my hair, "Now what w-was on that d-desk.."

My movement had improved slightly since putting on some decent clothes as I walked over to the brown desk and pulled the fallen seat up from the floor to then sit on it, observing the table's contents carefully.

I spotted the brown empty picture frame resting on my desk, still nothing inside of it or underneath it. There was the blue notebook with a black cow outline on the front cover and a few pens resting next to the neatly folded clothes.

"W-Whoops I forgot those were there…" I shook my head, rubbing the sides of temples, "M-Maybe I'm losing it after a-all.."

Ignoring the clothes for a minute, I grabbed the notebook and pens and noticed there wasn't anything written inside of the book; not even from the beginning to the end of it. It was an enigma as to why I had any of this, especially the other strange item resting on the desk: the brown teddy bear.

I glanced over to the bear, picked it up and held it's furry body in my hands. It's brown eyes stared back at me as I played with the purple glitter ribbon around its' neck casually.

"Is this m-mine?" I asked out loud, looking at the bear from top to bottom, before noticing a small white name tag underneath the bear's butt, "Is this a n-name?"

I squinted to read the tiny black text on the white tag and made out the words 'Kazumi Toriyako'. I rested the bear back down onto the table as I questioned the validity of the bear's owner's name. I don't really remember who I was, nor did I remember what my name was. Was this name tag my first clue as to what it was?

"Is this t-teddy bear m-mine?" I seriously wondered, "I g-guess it is….if it's w-with this other stuff...then that m-must mean it's mine and t-that was my name."

 **KAZUMI TORIYAKO - ULTIMATE ?**

Even though I wasn't too sure if my name was Kazumi Toriyako, if I were to encounter someone or something in this mysterious place, then I'd have to use this name as a default in case they get suspicious. I accepted that name as my own as I turned to my side and my foot kicked the purple, white and black owl shaped small backpack onto the floor.

"Is this m-my backpack?" I inquisitively thought, eyeing the bag from top to bottom, "L-Looks like a little k-kid's bag…"

I held one of the bag's straps, rested it onto the seat as I grabbed the folded clothes and rested them inside of the built in closet, hoping that I didn't inconvenience whoever put them there. I closed the closet door and returned to the desk, observing the items once more before losing my train of thought and almost giving up.

"I might a-as well use t-these…" I sighed with disappointment, unzipping the top of the bag and putting the items inside of the small backpack.

I put the picture frame, notebook and pens inside of the owl bag as I reached for the teddy bear, and tried fitting it inside of it to no avail. It seemed it wasn't spacious enough to fit the bear without a furry part or two sticking out or crushing it.

"I have a f-free hand...I can c-carry this," I inevitably decided, holding the bear in my right arm and zipping up the backpack and putting it over my shoulders carefully.

I felt like I was going to school or something with the way I was dressed, almost like a first grader going off to kindergarten or something. I must have been older than that, but my whimsical attire suggested something else entirely. I had the body of a teenager but the apparel of an elementary school student, it was almost embarrassing to even be thinking of that let alone imagining how creepy it must have be to wear something as childish as that.

"T-Time to find a w-way out of this r-room," I mumbled, looking around for an exit, before spotting a dark blue wooden carved door in front of me.

"P-Please be a w-way out…" I prayed, hugging the teddy bear to my chest, as I approached it and twisted the metal door handle.

I felt the smooth metal on the palm of my hand as I pulled the door towards me and closed my eyes, expecting to see a set of stairs or some kind of exit. As I slowly opened up my eyes, instead of an exit, I came across a long wide hallway that looked almost similar to the room that I was in but went both left and right in directions.

"Aww m-man…" I tilted my head down, sighing defeatedly as I brushed around my messy hair, "I h-had a f-feeling it wasn't g-g-going to be t-that easy…"

I shook off that inconsequential notion of finding an easy exit and took in the environment around me, a bit confused as well as amazed by what I saw.

The floors were tiled a dark cyan color with the walls sporting the same fish like decal that was present inside of the room I woke up in. The entire room itself was like one giant walk in a tunnel you'd see in any large scale water park, where the ceiling was replaced with a clear transparent glass fixture and a beautiful image of the blue ocean water glistened above my head. I noticed some more species of fish pass by, some larger than others as a few other aquatic life passed by such as grey sharks with beaded black eyes, dark green turtles swimming aimlessly around the water, small tinier rainbow fish swimming underneath the predators above them and hiding inside of the colorful coral nearby and a few rocky formations leaned close to the tunnel's exterior shape; almost as if the rocks formed around the tunnel or something built underneath them.

"W-Wow….t-this is so pretty.." I took in the magnificent view, completely distracted from escaping this weird and enigmatic tunnel of wonder, "F-Focus Kazumi…..or w-whoever I was.."

Unsure of which direction to go, I headed to my right and walked down the hallway as a sense of dread washed over me. I felt the millions of fish swimming above my head all staring simultaneously at me, as if I was a criminal on the run. It was unnervingly scary and the sheer feeling that I was being watched unsettled me even more.

"W-Where do I- agh!" I felt my body lunge forward as I fell face first onto the floor, seeming to have tripped over something solid, "Agh….oww.."

I dropped the items I was holding and greeted the cold tiled floor. The intense pain from falling over was quadrupled due to my already debilitated state; it felt unbearable, but I had to push through the pain if I wanted to leave this place.

"Mgrh…" a voice groaned softly, "Mmmhm…"

Eventually getting up from my fallen state, I turned around and came face to face with the thing that tripped me over, or more specifically someone. I rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't hallucinating that there was someone in front of me, but to no avail, there was indeed someone there.

The figure was resting on the floor, almost in a sleep like state, as if they were trying to get a quick nap in before doing anything else. Their body rested horizontally in the hallway as their hands were cupped underneath their head and their legs were outstretched and resting on top of each other evenly.

"W-What?" I seriously wondered, getting a better look at who I bumped into.

The sleeping person on the floor was a girl. Her chest length dark brown hair, which I almost confused for being colored black, was tied up in a messy bun with a few messy strands framing the sides of her face as she slept almost peacefully. She had a very skinny figure and her fair skin only accentuated her natural looks even more.

She was dressed in a red cowl neck sweater that almost looked a bit like a blanket with how it hugged her skin, black skinny jeans rested comfortably on her legs and at the side of her person were a pair of mid calf boots and a pair of black round-framed glasses that she probably set aside so she could rest easier on the floor.

"W-Who is she?" I mumbled to myself, picking up the teddy bear that I dropped after my fall, "W-Why is she s-sleeping there?"

While I did admit I was kind of in a hurry to find an exit, my inner curiosity took ahold of me as I knelt down to the girl's level and watched her closely to see if she was responsive or even breathing at all. I didn't really see much movement, but saw her body move up and down briefly, probably from breathing through her nose as she slept quietly.

"M-Maybe I shouldn't w-wake her.." I thought to myself, trembling nervously as I watched the sleeping girl curiously like some creepy stalker, "I s-should leave before she g-gets suspicious."

As I turned around, I felt the edge of my owl backpack brush against her sweater as I felt her body move around a bit more. I guess I should have been a bit quieter in my approach, from the looks of it, it seemed that I had rudely awakened her from her nap.

"Mrgh...w-who's there?" she sleepily groaned, slowly opening up her eyes and swishing her hand around her person, as if she were looking for something, "Where are my glasses?"

She kept waving her hands around looking for her aforementioned glasses, as I noticed them next to her person on her right. Thinking momentarily, I was a bit unsure of how to approach her, should I help her out or leave her hanging? I pondered on the idea for a few moments, before deciding to do the right thing and headed over to retrieve her glasses for her.

"E-Excuse me…" I muttered out anxiously, "A-Are these b-by chance y-yours?"

I held out the pair of glasses and handed them to her as she turned to face me. Her eyes were squinted tightly and I guess she heard my voice, as she began grabbing the air, before taking the glasses from my hand and resting them onto her face.

"Ah..thank you," she thanked me, fixing them on her face, "That's much better.."

I uneasily stared at her as she stood up from her resting position and dusted off her baggy looking clothing. I nervously stood there, too anxious to speak to her and too fearful to ask her if she was alright or even who she was. I did get a close look at what her eyes looked like; they were a bright purple color , as well as droopy with a few black bags underneath to emphasize the tired look on her face.

"Oh, I didn't see you there," she started the conversation, talking normally to me, "Thanks for giving me my glasses...umm, who are you?"

She patiently awaited my answer as I stood there trembling in my shoes. I quivered and shook in place, unsure of what to tell this random girl I just met whilst searching for a way to escape this place. I was completely petrified as to how to approach the situation, since I didn't really account of the idea that anyone else would be here.

"Are you alright?" she asked, giving a very stoic smile accompanied with a passive tone in her voice, "You seem a bit shy, where did you come from? I've never seen you before.."

"I-I uh…" I anxiously mumbled, unable to conjure up proper words to speak, "I'm not s-sure...I uh...don't know w-what's going on."

"I see," the mysterious girl mused, raising an eyebrow as she looked at me from top to bottom as if she were analyzing me, "Do you at least know what your name is?"

Oh shoot, I was so baffled for words I didn't know what to say to that. To be honest, I had no clue of who I was nor did I even know if I should tell her who I was. Even if the name I was given felt like a fake name, I had to give her something, otherwise she would get suspicious of me.

"I uh...my n-name is K-Kazumi T-Toriyako.." I stammered, breathing a sigh of relief after having gotten that out of the way.

"Alright Kazumi…" the girl, while still feeling a bit unconvinced as sweat dripped down my forehead, gave me a lazy smile and reciprocated the greeting, "Even though you woke me up rather abruptly….you helped me find my glasses, so it's all good."

"O-Oh..I see…" I shivered nervously, feeling even more relieved that she believed my potential fake name.

"Nice to meet you, Kazumi," she sleepily greeted, yawning into her hand as she stretched her arms out some more, "I'm Yumeji Motome, you can call me Yume for short, if you want to."

"A-Alright Yumeji.." I responded back dubiously, "W-Where are we?"

"Oh, you don't know?" she seemed almost surprised by my question, "If I remember correctly….we were all invited to this place by the headmaster I think…"

"H-Headmaster?" I asked her, unsure of what she was talking about, "I d-don't know w-what you are t-talking about.."

Yumeji sleepily blinked her eyes at me, as I was too sheepish to question her further or press her on the issue. She breathed in a deep sigh as she tilted up her glasses and continued to converse with me even though it was her doing most of the talking.

"I'm pretty sure, I got this letter from the headmaster...asking me to join this program or whatever…" she scratched her head, thinking on her words, "Apparently, I'm an Ultimate student and I was invited to join some prestigious school or something to that effect."

Ultimate student? School? Letter? I had no clue of what she was talking about nor did I have the faintest idea of what she meant. I don't even remember how I got here, let alone receiving a letter to any kind of school.

"I'm sorry Yume..I d-don't r-remember getting a l-letter…" I answered her directly, "I d-don't even k-know what an U-Ultimate student is…"

Yumeji was in complete disbelief, but you couldn't tell from the very passive look on her sleepy countenance. She twirled a strand of her hair around and thought over my words briefly, before coming up with another topic to talk about.

"How can you not know what Ultimate you are?" she asked me, almost as if I should have known this like second hand knowledge, "I'm the Ultimate Oneirologist, what about you?"

 **YUMEJI MOTOME - ULTIMATE ONEIROLOGIST**

"I-I'm sorry..w-what are you t-talking about?" I had even more questions after she said that, "W-What's an Oneirologist? And w-what is an U-Ultimate exactly, I really d-don't know."

She almost seemed too stumped for words given my responses to her basic questions. However instead of immediately jumping to conclusions, she put her hand to her chin and pondered on what I just said to her, almost like a therapist would to their patient when evaluating their mental state.

"To answer your questions, I study dreams, or dream therapy to be exact," she told me, giving me a bare bones idea of what she does, "Tell me Kazumi...do you remember anything at all?"

She hit me with a loaded question right from the start, almost as if she were pressing me for details like a hard boiled detective or something. I felt like my personal space was being invaded by her very hefty and puzzling questions.

"I d-don't remember m-much, Yumeji.." I answered her question, hoping to pry some information out of her also, "I-I just r-remember w-waking up in a s-strange room...I h-have no idea w-who I am...nor d-do I know h-how I got here."

Even though I kind of gave her much to dwell on and think about, she didn't seem at all flustered nor did she interrupt me to ask me another question. She listened to me carefully, assessing my situation with a calm mind and very logical approach.

"I see...well then Kazumi," she trailed off shortly, summarizing her thoughts, "If what you are saying is true, assuming you're telling me the truth, then you have a form of retrograde amnesia."

"A-Amnesia?" I mumbled sheepishly, "W-What do you m-mean, Yume?"

"I'm saying that in your vulnerable state, you have no memory of who you are, nor do you possess any idea of how you got here, is that correct?" she said almost like how a professional doctor would.

"Y-Yeah…" I nodded my head in confusion.

"Then according to my knowledge in psychology...it seems you have an acute case of amnesia," she crossed her arms lazily, "But that's just an educated guess...I did just meet you after all, so my hypothesis is rather unfounded for the time being."

"O-Oh..that m-makes sense…" I agreed with the oneirologist a bit too readily.

"Which also means you don't even remember what your Ultimate Talent is either," she deduced, observing me rather closely, "This is very intriguing indeed."

"What d-does that e-even mean?" I asked her, still unsure of what an Ultimate student was or what it entailed, "Why d-did you c-call yourself t-that, Yume?"

"Because as an Ultimate, I am good at what my talent suggests," she explained, yawning softly, "I'm considered a teen prodigy in that sense, since my knowledge in my field surpasses that of a regular trained professional's...or so I'm told."

That makes a bit of sense I suppose, even though I still had a few more questions than I did concrete answers. Despite the oneirologists' patience with my incessant questions, it seemed it was wearing a bit thin, judging from her sleepy purple eyes blinking and looking heavy upon her face.

"I s-see...thanks Y-Yume…" I responded, both assured and frazzled at the same time, "I'll b-be sure to k-keep that in m-mind...even t-though I'm s-still unsure of e-everything you just s-said."

"No problem, I suppose," she shrugged her shoulders, still keeping an indifferent face throughout, "I going to continue my nap, it was nice to meet you, Kaz."

"K-Kaz?" I asked, curious as to why she referred to me by that name, "Is t-that a pet n-name?"

"Maybe…" she gave me a sleepy smile, removing the glasses from her face and resting them back on the ground close to the walls, "I hope you and your teddy bear find what you're looking for, Kaz."

I looked down at the teddy bear I found and stared at it's button eyes listlessly, forgetting that I was still holding it the entire time. Almost immediately, Yumeji started falling back asleep, her body positioned comfortably leaning against the walls and out of the walkway. The first person I met and so far I still had no clue of what was going on or why I was even here.

She provided me with some insight on what was going on, but when she started deviating the conversation to talking about getting accepted to a school is where I immediately got lost. I guess I should keep looking and not question it at that point.

I left the somnolent oneirologist to continue sleeping by the wayside as I continued my pursuit for an exit. I walked down some more long hallways; all sporting the same clear underwater ceiling view that transpired above my head. As much as I wanted to stay and watch the beautiful scenery, I didn't feel safe staying still in one spot for too long, I needed to get out as fast as possible.

I walked uncomfortably down another long hallway and heard a lot of swishing and thumping noises coming from somewhere outside. I searched my surroundings and turned my attention up at the ceiling and saw a fierce sight unfold before me.

I witnessed what looked to be a giant orangish red squid with long wiggly tentacles wrapped around a grey whale. Both sea creatures seemed to be fighting with each other, almost as if it was either one or the other. The whale did its best to wriggle free from the constrictive squid as the squid started squirting ink into the ocean water to blind the whale as they both fought.

"Fascinating…" remarked a voice coming from nearby, "I never thought I'd witness a feat this spectacular up close."

I nervously panicked and looked back into the hallway and came face to face with another figure that was in the middle of the hallway, observing the sea creatures fighting each other. I was both frightened as well as intimidated by the person that was standing in front of me.

The person was male and to say he was imposing in figure was an understatement. His black hair was cut low and fashioned into a buzz cut look with sharp dark green eyes that look intensely focused on the fight itself. He was very muscular with a rather large frame and his tanned skin and rugged looks only made him a force to be reckoned with if anything. I noticed that there was a semblance of a beard on his face; almost faint like a five o' clock shadow and his hands were rough and rather callused with a lot of hair on his arms and a bit on his chest from what I could see. His body was littered with scars from his arms spreading to his chest and there was a small scar that was underneath his right eye, only making him more intimidating to look at.

He wore a light brown muscle shirt which did nothing but only highlight his tight and muscular arms and parts of his upper body even more, he was impressively buff and looked to be a lot older than he appeared. He wore tan camo pants that were tucked into heavy tan boots that were laced up high, which made him look like some military soldier or some type of combat fighter. Around his neck, I noticed a black string necklace that rested snugly on his rather large chest with a what looked to be a lion's canine tooth as a pendant. Wrapped around his waist inside of a dark brown holster was a large hunting knife that made me gulp intensely.

"Y-Yikes!" I mentally screamed, hoping to not make any noises as to alert him to my presence, "H-He's so s-scary.."

I was too flabbergasted to say anything and I was beyond terrified to approach or speak to the muscle bound giant standing before me. I wasn't sure whether confronting him at all was a good idea or if it was just signing my death warrant, either way I was potentially a goner if I misspoke or crossed him.

"Amazing...I never expected that," the muscular man seemed impressed with the fight happening above our heads, eyeing it like a spectator at a football match.

I looked up towards where he was staring and noticed that the squid had given up and went limp. The whale then began swallowing the squid whole, as I covered my mouth in horror at the sight in front of me. I had never seen something as gory and fierce like that up close, it was beyond mystifying but also worrying.

"Impressive, isn't it?" the man said, almost as if he were talking to someone, "Don't you think so, pal?"

I looked back to where he was, turned my head around and searched the area for who he was talking with and noticed him standing face to face with me as I nearly jumped in my shoes.

"Agh!" I jumped from the initial shock, slipping and falling to my feet before getting pulled back up with great force, "O-Oh uh...wha?"

"That was a close one," the man remarked, grabbing my skinny arm with his large hand and almost crushing it, "Better watch ya step there bud, or else you might become fish food."

"I-I'm s-sorry...I didn't m-mean to u-upset you.." I shakily apologized to the man, picking and choosing my words carefully, "P-Please don't h-hurt me!"

I quivered and shook in his presence, cowering and covering my head as I closed my eyes, hoping that my death would be a quick one. I was paralyzed with fear as I didn't feel his hand grab me or lunge at my neck.

"Hahaha, such an odd guppy," he chuckled loudly, his laughter almost echoing throughout the empty halls, "I'm not gonna do anything to ya."

"Y-You're not?" I recovered and opened up my eyes slowly, "Y-You're not g-going to h-hurt me?"

"No, I'm not," he chuckled, slapping me forcefully on my back, almost breaking my spine with his massive hand, "I'd never harm someone as tiny and fragile as you!"

I wasn't really sure how to respond to the man's very boisterous comments. I was too stupefied with fear and potentially sore from spinal damage to respond back to the large man. I was afraid if I pissed him off, then I'd be at the receiving end of his extremely sharp hunter's blade.

"T-Thanks...I guess?" I acknowledged his attempt at wry humor with a nervous thanks, "W-Who are you?"

"Oh right, sorry bout that pal!" he then straightened his stance and cleared his throat, "Name's Dragomir Kita, you can call me Drago if ya like!

He then smirked and crossed his arms together, acting as if he were trying to impress me or something. He seemed almost impressed with himself as he continued to introduce himself to me.

"Or if ya want to refer to my title, I'm the Ultimate Zoologist!" he proudly remarked.

 **DRAGOMIR KITA - ULTIMATE ZOOLOGIST**

Dragomir? That name doesn't sound Japanese at all, I guess he must be a foreigner or something. From the way he spoke, I could hear an accent in his dialect, along with his Japanese being rather shaky and sounding a bit rough around the edges. Also, zoologist? He must study animals if I remember correctly, which could explain his fascination with that fight as a whole.

"N-Nice to meet y-you, Drago…" I nervously extended my hand to him, "I-I'm K-Kazumi Toriyako...I uh...d-don't know my t-talent."

"Kazumi huh?" he looked me up and down, taking in my name, "Well no matter, I do hope that we get to know each other well, ya hear?"

"O-Oh uh sure...D-Drago…" I responded instinctively, almost like a scared deer staring at the headlights of a car.

Dragomir made a small smile, uncrossing his arms and approaching me closely, putting his hand on my shoulder as he pointed upwards after shaking my hand almost a bit too roughly.

"See that, that's the Colossal Squid fighting with it's mortal enemy the Humpback Whale," he directed my attention to the whale devouring the squid's remains, "It's a fight between two rivals, forever fighting for basic survival, one of them ends up as the winner while the other ends up bones and faecal matter."

"I-Is that s-so?" I wondered, a bit intrigued but also worried for the squid as the zoologist continued to regale me with his personal narration of the fight's outcome, "I d-didn't k-know that…"

"It's cool, ain't it?" he asked me rhetorically, as I nodded my head, going along with what he was saying, "Notice the marks and scratches on the whale's body? That's from the squid's teeth and tentacles, which was used to attack the whale, since the squid has sharp claws on each one."

"I-I see...h-how v-vicious.." I sweatdropped as Drago got a bit too close for comfort, "T-The poor squid.."

"Haha don't be sorry, Kazumi," he patted me lightly on my back as he looked back up, "This is the natural order of things, called the circle of life, it's an eat or be eaten world out there. You're either predator or prey."

It was rather impressive how much Dragomir knew so much about sea creatures. Remembering what Yumeji said, this must mean he has a lot of extensive information about this kind of stuff, since it's his job to study animals and their behavior patterns. It was still impressive how a man of his size was able to become so intellectual about something like this, almost as if he experienced stuff like this firsthand.

"See these scars on my body?" he then directed my attention to his arms, showing off his glorious biceps and triceps, "I got these deep ones from wrestling with a lioness and this one large gash from wrestling with a large grizzly bear."

My eyes lit up as he kept telling me about each individual scar. It was captivating how each one had its own little story to tell. I was impressed and stunned by his battle scars and he seemed more than willing to regale them to me as he talked, clearing his throat as he finished showing me his personal victories.

"Your little bear friend reminds me of that exact grizzly," he pointed to the teddy bear in my possession, "Except that fierce beast didn't wear such a feeble purple ribbon around its wide neck, haha."

I held up the teddy bear and observed it closer. I had no idea that a toy this adorably innocent could have been inspired by something so ferocious and fearsome; it was mind boggling. I titled my head to the side as I hugged it and sighed deeply, realizing that I was getting off track of my current goal of escaping.

"W-Well it w-was nice meeting y-you Drago…" I waved to him nervously, shaking less than before I talked with him, "T-Thanks for t-teaching me something n-new."

"Same to you, bud!" he smiled proudly, bearing his pearly white teeth at me as he put his hands on his hips, "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to continue watching the critters duke it out with each other."

"O-Ok...b-bye.." I bade goodbye to him, passing by him and headed further down the hallway.

I left the zoologist as I walked down the long narrowing corridors of this mysterious aquarium. I'd met about two people so far and I was just as confused as to why they were here and why they were talking so casually after possibly having been kidnapped, if that was the case for them as it might have been for me. It made no sense as to how they were taking this situation lightly or why they're not as freaked out as I was. Were they under the impression that they weren't in any danger? One thing's for certain, I wasn't going to stick around for long to find out.

I eventually came across a set of purple double doors leading to another room labelled with the sign 'Dining Room' written in black text, plastered on a white scroll similar to that of a treasure map.

"H-Here goes n-nothing…" I mumbled nervously, pushing open the doors and entered inside, "O-Oh my...t-this v-very large.."

As I entered into the room, I was rather surprised by what I saw. I was too stunned for words as what I saw before me looked imaginary, almost beyond man-made conventions. It was like something out of a dream almost with how magnificent it all was.

The room was as tall as a mini skyscraper with how big it was and I felt my soft mumbling echo throughout the wide room, even though I couldn't see anyone else inside. The massive room resembled that to a large ballroom you'd see in a fancy five star restaurant; to say it was opulent and well decorated was an understatement.

The floor was furnished with smooth dark blue carpets that felt like I was walking on top of a cloud as I moved around observing each detail of the room. The walls were plastered with a fun, almost childlike, aquatic wallpaper that sported multicolored fish with cartoonish beady white eyes, green seaweed dancing in the water's depths and even treasure chests that was filled to the brim with jewelry, gold coins and even priceless gems. There wasn't any ceiling in this large room, which seemed to be a running theme for this mysterious aquarium, as I could see the ocean's waters and fish swimming carelessly overhead with the faint sunlight peering in from above, giving the room a dim ambience. There were sharks, dolphins, turtles and even small fish swimming by as I watched them all swim past each other harmoniously in sync with the ocean's movements.

The room itself comprised of a stage that was in the far middle back of the room, with purple curtains resting at the sides of the stage, a grand piano resting comfortably on the hardwood floors and a few other instruments resting nearby. There was a drink bar on the opposite end of the room, near the entrances of the large room, the bar itself had lots of beverages such as water, fruit juices, carbonated sodas from every famous brand and to top it all off, even alcoholic beverages as well like whiskey, vodka and beer. On the walls of the dining room, there were wall lamps in the shape of orange glitter sea stars that shone a bright fiery dazzling light, giving the room a more dramatic effect.

For furniture, there seemed to be a bunch of black bar stools lined up next to the drink bar, tas well as about two giant round tables that almost took up the entire room itself with about twenty two seats, eleven seats to each table respectively. Each table was covered with a white tablecloth and there were light blue dinner plates placed neatly near each chair, along with a fork, knife, spoon and clear glass for each person. There were glass vases that were filled with clear water and in each vase there were a bouquet of purple anemone flowers, each one surrounded by small fountain like display showing a picture of a stonefish squirting water out of its mouth and pouring water into the glass circular layer surrounding the vases. There were sea green ribbons laced around the edges of each table and there was a gold sparkling shine sprinkled around the carpeted floors to give off a whimsical effect. To complete the dining room's ritzy presentation, there was a large diamond chandelier hanging from near the top of the room and dangled precariously over the middle of the room on a strong metal chain.

I was stunned by the gorgeous decor that made this room look ten times as amazing. It had the formal and professional look of any high class restaurant, but the gimmicky wallpaper and over the top decorations made it look like some children's themed seafood restaurant.

"Ahoy there! Glad I finally found some actual people in here!" shouted a loud voice coming from nearby the drink bar, "What are ye doing here, lad? Ye look like just a lil nipper to me."

I turned to my right to face whoever it was talking to me and saw someone sitting behind the drink bar counter, a smile plastered on their face as they jumped over the counter, knocking over some bar stools and approaching me almost a bit too close for comfort.

The person was a girl, who looked a bit too enthusiastic from how much she was moving around. She was around average height, maybe a few inches taller than me and was at a healthy weight with quite a lean figure. She had fairly decent toned arms and legs, but they didn't look overly impressive like Drago's. She had a pear-shaped body with moderate curves and a rather large chest, but that's not really something I'd care to mention in too much detail.

She had an oval shaped face, with a subtle pointed chin and a light olive complexion with small dimples near her cheeks, which highlighted her natural features even more. She had wide hazel eyes which looked almost round with how she was smiling, a pointed nose and thin lips which were colored a cherry pink color. Her dark fuschia pink hair was unevenly parted with thin purple highlights that were spread down her hair and loosely flowed down her back, bouncing around as she moved around, ending near her waist. Her hair was quite messy and wispy, with a few spiked ends that hung in the front of her face and reached near her shoulders with a few tucked behind her ears. Her fringe was jagged and parted down the right side of her face and looked to almost dangle in front of her round eyes.

However, what stood out the most about her was her rather bizarre clothing. It consisted of a white blouse with the collar folded back and slight ruffled sleeves that were folded back to her elbows, revealing a few faded thin scars on both of her arms. The top section of her blouse was undone to display a small amount of her cleavage and over the blouse was a sea green waistcoat vest with silver rounded buttons reaching her waistline. She wore a pair of hazel colored trousers that were folded back at her knees with finely embroidered pockets, simple brown sailor sandals strapped around her ankles and secured to her feet. On her back was a long navy colored coat that flowed behind her as she walked and I could see the fine embroidered details in it as well as a folded collar and silver studded buttons.

Her accessories were just as wild as her attire, which only made her stand out of a crowd even more. There was a large, wide rimmed dark grey hat, similarly to that of a pirate captain's resting on top of her head. She wore sapphire jewelled earrings in both of her ears, a bronze colored chain around her neck with a rather large medallion that was larger than her face, almost the size of a tea coaster, and that had an engraving of a crossed trident and anchor symbol. There was a silver skull and crossbones brooch attached to the left side of her waistcoat, a black leather belt with a silver rectangular buckle attached to a holster which contained a short cutlass. In another holster on her belt, there appeared to be a sailor's telescope with her pockets filled with something I didn't get a good look at. To contrast with her pirate garb, there was a silver wristwatch around her right wrist and a charm bracelet with an anchor, turtle and seashell charms on her left wrist. Around her right ankle was a green seaweed like anklet that only added to her pirate aesthetic. Lastly, she carried a hazel canvas backpack on her back that probably contained her possessions and other valuables.

Describing this girl's entire look in of itself was a mouthful. She had so much going on all at once and the bright colors made her stand out ten times more in this rather fancy setting, almost a clear distinct contrast between the elegance of the room and the carefree and almost wild outfit she wore. She looked like a genuine pirate cosplayer or someone who arrived here from ancient times and was stuck in the present from how she was dressed.

"W-Who are y-you?" I nervously asked, shivering in my shoes at her bombastic presence, unsure of what to say.

"Shiver me timbers!" the strangely dressed female shouted, jolting me out of my dazed state, "Ye must be a landlubber to not have heard of me!"

"U-Um…I d-don't know w-what's going on, m-miss," I quivered whilst talking to her, a bit overwhelmed by her intense personality.

"Well I don't blame ye," she said, seeming a bit jittery while she talked, almost like a kid who had too much sugar, "Not everyday someone comes face to face with a great pirate captain!"

"P-Pirate?" I asked, confused by her extreme tone, "W-What are y-you talking about, you d-didn't tell me w-what your name is?"

"Aye landlubber, if yer eager to know so badly, remember me name well!" she took a few steps back and posed, grabbing what looked to be a sharp cutlass she pulled out from a brown sheath around her waist, "Name's Captain Takara Hamasaki, arr I be the Ultimate Sailor, matey!"

 **TAKARA HAMASAKI - ULTIMATE SAILOR**

So the oddly dressed girl was an Ultimate too and liked to behave like a pirate. Even though it kind of explained her entire outfit, I felt that it was more of a persona if anything. I mean, there's no way someone like her is an actual pirate, she even said she was a sailor herself. I was ten times as puzzled after meeting her, but I decided to humor her as she continued waving her cutlass around almost daringly as she swiped it around in the air, trying to get my attention.

"A-Ahoy? M-My name is K-Kazumi T-Toriyako...it's n-nice to m-meet you T-Takara," I timidly greeted her, extending my hand out to give her a handshake.

She then took her free hand and spat in it, slapping my hand with hers as she shook it vigorously. I felt her slimy wet palm touch mine as I cringed mentally, wanting to retract my hand out of pure disgust. However, the handshake lasted a bit longer than I imagined as she shook it roughly, almost dislocating my wrist in the process.

"Aye nice to meet ye Kazumi-lad! I bet you'd make a great first-matey on deck! What do ye say? Do ye want to pillage and plunder whilst sailing the great Seven Seas?" she asked me instantly after my greeting, letting go of my hand and leaving it covered in her wet saliva, "I think yer teddy companion would want in on the fun!"

"U-Um...n-no thanks, C-Captain.." I winced from the slimy handshake and wiped my hand on my pants, "I-I'm not a s-seaworthy s-sailor…"

"Now that's not how a first mate is s'posed to be!" she seemed a bit upset with those words, "I tell ye there's nothing better than that for me! The sea is my true love; I've sailed many leagues and oceans, been on adventures beyond your wildest imagination, me hearty!"

The sailor's very broken vernacular left me both bewildered as well as curious as to what she meant. I imagine most sailors aren't as capricious and unpredictable as her. Then again, I've never met one before, so this was a rather interesting first hand experience.

"I-I have t-to go n-now, T-Takara," I slowly inched away from her as to not let her be weary of me, "I r-remembered I n-needed to do s-something.."

"Fair sailing, Kazumi!" she tipped her captain's hat at me, "May you find your treasure on your own azure path!"

The sailor then hustled back to the drink bar as she began rummaging around and fixing herself together a drink as pieces of cardboard were thrown around the dining room. I noticed another set of double doors, apart from the one I entered through, and made a rather swift exit like a cornered animal who escaped a ferocious predator.

I barged right through the double doors frantically and felt it hit something, as I was about to leave. It was a loud slamming noise as whatever I hit felt like it hurt, as I stood still after that.

"Oww what the fuck!" a male voice yelped in pain.

"S-Sorry!" I immediately responded after closing the door behind me, "I d-didn't see you t-there.." I extended my hand out to the person up.

"Don't fucking touch me, bitch," he pushed my hand away rudely, "You better apologize for almost breaking my nose, idiot!"

I looked down at the floor and saw the person I accidentally hit, rubbing their forehead in pain as I scrambled to check to see if they were alright. I blinked nervously and got a look at the person I unfortunately ran into; it was another guy.

He had shaggy light green hair that looked like a messy mop on top of his head, light grey eyes that seemed almost soulless when I looked into them and he had freckles across his cheeks. He was rather slender, almost thin and looked to be a few inches taller than me.

He wore a black shearling jacket with brown fur that looked like a skinned animal hide with a white t-shirt underneath, black pants with a black belt around his waist and he wore brown boots that looked worn out and old.

He had a very normal look to him; nothing that noteworthy, but then I started freaking out after slamming the door on him by accident. I was too anxious and scared to apologize as he arose to his feet and dusted off his coat. An annoyed and almost angry look was plastered on his face as he stared at me with a demonic and 'you're so dead look' on his face.

"Excuse me, gentleman," interjected another voice into the conversation, that sounded female, "What seems to be the problem here?"

I turned my head to see who it was that was intervened and saw another person approach the irritated guy and I. It was another girl, but she looked different compared to the male I just hit accidentally.

She had light blue hair styled in a wavy bob that fell an inch past her pointed chin. Her skin was tan, giving off a very natural look to it that contrasted with her dark blue eyes and hair. There was a small raised raised scar on the bottom of her chin and she had a very average build with an hourglass figure and noticeable curves.

She was attired in a more formal outfit compared to the guy. She wore a three piece suit that consisted of a blue dress shirt, light grey vest, jacket and pants that looked well tailored and expensive. She wore sensible black pumps on her feet, giving her a professional working woman vibe that was apparent from first glance. I got the feeling that she came from a wealthy family, given her rather fashionable and professional look and presentation.

"This shithead slammed the door into my face," the shaggy-haired male gritted his teeth angrily, "I was just minding my own business when it happened, he needs to fucking apologize."

"Oh, really?" the well dressed girl mused over the man's words, "And what do you have to say to his accusations, sir?"

"I u-uh...I'm s-sorry.." I sheepishly responded, hugging the teddy bear in my arms, "I-I didn't m-mean it, i-it was an a-a-accident.."

"Bullshit," he growled at me, grabbing my shirt collar tightly, "You think a half-assed excuse like that is going to cut it, coward!"

I was too shaken up to counter his furious response. A trickle of sweat slid down the sides of my head as I started panicking and breathing erratically, fearing that I was going to get beaten.

"Boys, please! Let's be civil about this!" the girl stepped into the argument, yelling at the both us, "Let go of him this instant and let's talk this out like gentlemen! Alright?"

Her firm tone seemed to have rattled the green-haired guy as he let go of my shirt collar, clicking his tongue and grumbling underneath his breath. My face was red and my heart was pounding rapidly, as if it wanted to escape from my chest from how absolutely terrified I felt.

"Now, let's try this again," she cleared her throat, maintaining her calm demeanor, "He apologized to you for the misunderstanding and now you must do the same."

"You're not the boss of me, lady," he muttered under his breath, sighing angrily.

"What was that?" she raised an eyebrow at him, "I didn't seem to catch that remark, care to repeat it?"

"Fine!" he shouted rather loudly as his voice echoed throughout the hall, "I'm fucking sorry for roughing you up...whoever you are."

After regaining my composure, I adjusted the bowtie around my neck, fixed my sweater and hugged my teddy bear nervously. I slowly started to catch my breath as I shook less, knowing that the girl's presence was here to help mediate the conflict between us.

"I-I'm K-Kazumi Toriyako...I-I'm sorry f-for h-hitting you, u-umm…" I trailed off, unsure of what his name was.

"Don't mention it," he shrugged off my apology, grumbling out his name "Name's Kimiya Iwasaki, Ultimate Ice Sculptor, nice to meetcha or whatever…"

 **KIMIYA IWASAKI - ULTIMATE ICE SCULPTOR**

He's an ice sculptor? I didn't really get that vibe from him, given his rather abrasive greeting. I guess we got off on the wrong foot if that's the case, but his rather hot-headed and pugnacious threats kind of made me think something else entirely, almost making me question if that was actually was his talent was. I just hope he didn't melt his ice sculptures with his fiery attitude, then he'd be out a job.

"Now then, that wasn't so hard now was it, Kimiya?" the well dressed girl huffed, calming her voice and remaining the mature one, "Are you alright, Kazumi?"

"I g-guess so…" I anxiously responded to her, still a bit drained from the interaction with the ice sculptor, "It's v-very nice to meet you, miss…t-thanks for i-intervening.."

"The pleasure is all mine," she stood up straight, nodding her head contently, "Iena Kaya, I'm the Ultimate Judge. It's no worry, it's my job after all."

 **IENA KAYA - ULTIMATE JUDGE**

My mind was trying to process the entire situation that just unfolded, as Iena and Kimiya both gave me their names and introduced themselves accordingly. They were almost stark contrasts with each other as Kimiya was tapping his foot irritably and Iena looked at me with a concerned face as I brushed some dark hair out of my face and my face turned back to its pale complexion.

So they're both Ultimates too, which meant that everyone I've met so far has had some sort of talent or job that they were good at. It seemed that with the people I've met so far, something told me that this was just the beginning of this wild experience of trying to escape this weird facility. I just hope the rest of these so called Ultimates weren't as polarizing as these two.

"J-Judge?" I questioned her talent, "Like i-in a c-c-courtroom?"

"Not that kind of judge," she fixed her grey jacket and buttoned it up, sighing with an almost disappointed huff, "More like judging food eating contests, beauty pageants and stuff like that. I don't blame you for confusing the two honestly."

"Then what's with the high and mighty attitude eh?" Kimiya scoffed at her, clicking his tongue in annoyance.

"Pardon me for being the mature one in the conversation," she retorted to his petty response with a confident smirk, "It's my job to see that disputes and scuffles reach a peaceful conclusion after all."

"You know what, this is pointless," he rubbed his forehead delicately, brushing past me and hitting my shoulder almost purposefully, "See you two never."

Iena's rather arrogant-sounding tone seemed to have made the ice sculptor even more peeved than he was at the moment. He shook his head and then walked out of the hallway and into the dining room area where Takara was. I wanted to warn him that she was extremely excitable and probably the last person he wanted to see in his riled up manner, but I was too scared to voice my thoughts to him at that time, out of fear he might lash out again.

"What a petulant child," Iena put her finger to her lips and thought, "Is he trying to prove how tough or manly he is or something?"

"I-I'm not s-sure…" I meekly answered her, "I d-don't really b-blame him, s-since it's k-kind of my fault.."

"Well, in any case, it was nice to meet you, Kazumi," she patted me on the back, trying to console me, "Please make sure to stay out of trouble next time, okay?"

"A-Alright.." I responded to her unusually caring suggestion, "T-Thanks I-Iena.."

The judge waved to me as she went inside of the dining room area after Kimiya. As the double doors swung open, I noticed Kimiya and Takara talking with each other, or rather the sailor was chatting his ear off as he covered his ears to drown her out, noticing the disgruntled look on his face. The judge decided to intervene into the mix as the doors closed behind me, waking me out of my daze.

"W-What a w-weird group of p-people.." I thought to myself, sighing with relief as I went down the hallway and left to continue my search for an exit.

I passed through some more hallways, watching the fish slowly swim above my head as I wandered down the almost empty hallways of this mysterious aquatic facility. Each twist and turn I took, it felt like a never ending maze with no clear map of where to go in sight. Finding a door, let alone an exit, was like finding a needle in a haystack inside of this place, all the winding hallways looked the exact same to me, and the dim lighting in each corridor only made me feel even more drowsy and lethargic.

"W-Where is that e-exit," I sleepily mumbled, yawning as I slowly started to feel even more tired and weak, "W-Why does this p-place all l-look the same…."

I almost gave up searching for an exit until I came across another room marked 'Rec Room' and noticed a bright aquamarine colored door in front of me. Out of sheer curiosity, I turned the handle and entered inside, hoping once more that there was an exit somewhere inside of the room.

I entered it and instead of finding an exit, I emerged into something that was anything but that. It was large, but not as ginormous as the dining room, that's for sure. The room had a variety of things inside of it that caught my attention, it was almost hard to focus on one thing given how much was going at once.

The floor was fashioned with a light grey carpet that felt rougher and more scratchy compared to the soft material used in the dining room's carpet. The wallpaper had the same design as the dining room, but instead of fish, there were sharks and dolphins swimming around in a purple soda like version of the ocean, accompanied by dancing starfish with black top hats and canes dancing on the wallpaper. There were white seashell wall lights inside of the room that gave off a brighter view of it as a whole than the dining room.

There were about two dark blue couches inside on opposite ends of the room with three lavender pillows on each one. Party lights that shone in rainbow hues brightened up the room's already incandescent aura and nearly gave me a headache with how illuminous and off putting it was to look at. There was a pool table in the middle of the room with a bunch of billiard sticks and a box filled with hand chalk resting on the back wall with a stick stand with about five billiard sticks and a bunch of colorful balls resting inside of a metal triangle mold keeping them in place. On another end of the room, there was a red and green dart board with a black background left open with a few darts stuck inside of the memory foam of each point slot. There was a karaoke machine with two microphones on the side of the small rectangular box and there were a few buttons on the machine with a screen on the front to display the song that was playing as you sung along. It almost looked like some variation of a jukebox as there were a bunch of discs inside of the machine and bunch of numbers on each button.

As well as that, there were about two pinball machines inside of the room, one was brightly colored and had a circus like theme to it with the name 'Cirque De La Mort' and the other machine had a more sci fi like element to it and was called 'Star Journey' with flashing blue lights. Lastly, the room had two small round tables with about two black chairs to each one; one table had an entire chess piece set, both with black and white pieces and the other table had what looked to be backgammon or something similar.

"I-Is this l-like a p-playroom?" I thought in my head, observing the room and noticing the same aquatic overhead view above me, "S-Still no e-exit…oh w-well.."

As I scoped out the room, I spotted three people inside of it. There were two guys and one girl inside of the room and each one looked to be preoccupied with doing their own thing. One of the guys was talking with the girl and the other one was sitting on the couch and fiddling with something in his hands.

The guy talking with the girl stood out to me the most. He had light pink hair that bordered on a cotton candy white color and look like a silky ribbon, long and lusciously flowing behind his back and hung all the way to his belly button. His minty green eyes looked piercing and deep, almost as if looking directly into them would turn you to stone. He looked to be of average weight, a bit skinny, and he looked to be a few inches taller than me.

He wore a grey parka with a fake white fur hood that he wore up on his head, which made his hair lay over his shoulders. He wore a jacket and cropped button up top underneath his parka, from what I could see, but I couldn't make out the color. His white pants had a soft pink-colored train attached to the back of it, held together by a belt, and it seemed to be half a foot behind him. He wore black knee-high boots tied with white lacing, along with white bows behind them while, for accessories, he wore a silver chain around his neck, a pair of crystal snowflake earrings in his ears and three silver bracelets on each of his wrists.

I wasn't really an expert on fashion, but he looked to be someone who could easily stand out of a crowd even if he wasn't trying. His look screamed 'notice me and bask in my glory' but I shouldn't be too quick to judge his taste in clothes. I almost confused him for a girl with how feminine he presented himself, but from his overall build and attire, I kind of had a feeling he was a guy. The girl he was talking to, was just as fashionably attired as he was, almost with similarly colored clothing but of different make.

The sole girl in the room had long golden blonde hair that tied into a high ponytail with bangs framing the sides of her face. Her warm brown eyes were accentuated with black eyeliner, giving off a small winged effect and her eyelashes fluttered with black mascara, having highlighted their butterfly-esque nature. She had a very slim but svelte figure to her, with slight curves and an average bust that looked perfectly fitting against her light skin tone.

She wore a pink heart sweater on her upper body that snugly hugged her skin. Black floral leggings on both of her legs as well as black ankle boots, which seemed to finish off her simple yet runway look. Underneath her sweater, I noticed a small magenta mini-skirt that I almost missed and assumed she was wearing no lower piece and was just walking around half naked.

To complete her model-like appearance, she wore a pair of gold feather earrings in her ears and there was a gold necklace with a gold key pendant hanging around her neck.

She was very pretty, almost as if she was a real fashion model herself; her entire look from head to toe had this very doll like aesthetic that made her look like one of those Darbie dolls that most young girls would play with. It seems she and the pink-haired fashionable man were hitting it off rather well. The two of them seemed to be having a fun conversation, he chuckled and she giggled as if they each were joking about an inside joke or something.

The other person in the room, the boy sitting on one of the couches, seemed to be fiddling with something in his hands. He seemed to be intensely focused on what he was doing as I tried to get a better look of what it was that he was doing.

He had wavy strawberry blonde hair that was really wavy, like beach waves almost. His eyes were a golden hazel color and were brighter than mine, giving off a more youthful glow to his round-like face. His cheeks were slightly blushed against his lightly pale skin and it only added to his very childlike appearance, accompanied by the fact that even though he was sitting down, he looked to be shorter than me by a few inches. He had a very thin build but had an average skinny kind of look that didn't make him stand out too much.

He wore an oversized peach sweater that almost covered his hands, which I had to double take at, with a pair of light grey sweatpants on his lower body that gave off a very comfy look. On his feet were a pair of white sneakers and covering his head was a light red plain baseball cap that did nothing to hide his wavy hair.

He reminded me of one of those kids from those cereal commercials with the comical mascot who tried to steal the cereal from him, but ended up failing entirely because of their wacky over the top schemes. His very youthful appearance made me question whether or not he was my age, but it was hard to tell from far away. He seemed to be playing with a bunch of colorful yarn that rested next to his person as he handled a bunch of metal knitting needles; he seemed affixed to what he was doing, almost entranced.

"Ooh! Someone else is here!" the knitting boy jumped excitedly, alerting the other two in the room, "It's so exciting, it's so very nice to meet you!"

"U-Umm…" I was taken aback by his rather jumpy greeting, almost falling back on my butt but I was able to maintain my balance, "H-Hello t-there…"

"Oh ho, another cutie enters the room," the fashionable man entered the conversation, "You have an interesting look to you, sweetie, going for a very emo geeky look I see."

"W-What? T-Thanks I g-guess?" I quizzically responded to him, unsure of how to respond to his semi-complimentary greeting.

"I guess so, not really something to be impressed by, that's for sure" the blonde girl remarked, crossing her arms and approaching me alongside the two boys, "But he's not worth your attention, Lev."

"I-I'm sorry?" I titled my head at the girl's rather abrupt and slightly rude comment, "W-What do you m-m-mean?"

"Play nice Aphie," the man called Lev told the girl he playfully called Aphie, "He's obviously confused about where he is, but I could tell that just from his entire ensemble alone~"

"Oh really, I didn't know that!" the hyperactive younger boy reacted, "I don't really see an issue with his clothes, I think he looks good!"

"Hmph, I wouldn't expect someone who's dressed in hand-me-downs, to understand," the fashionable man scoffed at the younger boy who didn't really seem all that phased by his curt remark, "Such exquisite charm is lost on a simpleton like you."

"I'd be better off advertising a line of cat food than talking with people as unglamorous as them, Lev," the blonde girl sneered at the both of us, "Let's just go somewhere else instead."

The conversation was going too fast for me to comprehend what they were talking about, it almost gave me whiplash. It seemed as if I was getting complimented for my outfit, told I was insignificant and then told that I wasn't worthy of talking to them or something. My train of thought was all over the place as I had a hard time fielding their incessant and jumbled rambling.

"E-Excuse me...b-but who a-are you p-people?" I asked them meekly, hoping that I wasn't interrupting their important conversation.

"Oh, how rude of me, sorry about that~" the fashionable man cleared his throat, gesturing at me with a bewitching smile that was intensified by how handsome he was up close, "Well then cutie, my name is Lev Moroz. I am the Ultimate Fashion Designer. If you're here for fashion advice, then, I'm your man, unless you want my number, then I'd be happy to oblige~"

 **LEV MOROZ - ULTIMATE FASHION DESIGNER**

After Lev introduced himself, it made sense why the glamorous-dressed girl was calling him Lev earlier. I got the impression that he was trying to be friendly with me, but it came off a bit overly flirtatious if anything, but I didn't really pay it any mind. Also, his very high-end clothing made even more sense knowing that he was a fashion designer; maybe he made those clothes himself, which would explain the very hand-stitched look of it all.

"N-nice to m-meet you, Lev-" I was about to introduce myself, before the blonde girl interjected into the conversation and added her two cents.

"Can't forget about me!" she chimed in, giggling almost playfully, "I'm the gorgeous Aphrodite Zhang! Not like you'll forget a name as glorious as mine. I'm the Ultimate Pageant Queen."

 **APHRODITE ZHANG - ULTIMATE PAGEANT QUEEN**

Pageant Queen? So, she's a model but more so for beauty contests? I guess that makes a bit of sense, but how is being pretty and fashionable a talent? It made sense for Lev to have a talent like his, but I was just as confused about Aphrodite's as anyone else's.

"Now that that's out of the way," she flipped back some of her hair behind her head, "Let's go back to talking about a fashion line inspired by yours truly, Lev!"

"In a moment sweetie," the fashion designer halted the pageant queen, "I need to know the name of this averagely dressed cutie, first."

"I uh...um...K-Kazumi T-Toriyako…" I mumbled my name out to them, scared of being interrupted again.

"Well then Kaz," Lev chuckled as he leaned over and whispered something into my ear, "If you ever need help looking for a new outfit, I'd be more than ecstatic to make one for you~"

"O-Oh...thanks f-for the o-offer, Lev.." I responded with a surprised and embarrassed look on my face after his lips met my ear, making me blush intensely.

"Don't mention it," he remarked, winking at me flirtatiously, "Now Aphie darling, where were we?"

"Finally!" she squealed almost a bit too excitedly, "Now then, I was thinking about an all pink line of dresses and skirts..."

The two of them continued chatting over fashion as it seemed they were already acquainted with the other, heading over to the other side of the room. I'd never imagine those two to fit so well together that they almost looked like some sort of power couple with how good they looked together. It was almost a match made in heaven if anything.

"Hey! Hey Kazumi!" the other boy tapped me on the shoulder, looking at me with a doey-eyed look in his eyes, "Do you like knitting?"

"K-Knitting? U-umm...n-not really," I responded to him, a bit perplexed by his random request, "I'm n-not really an e-expert…"

"No, silly head!" he shook his head, "I mean do you like wearing knitted goods? Do you have a favorite color? Favorite preference of yarn?"

His rapid fire questions caught me off guard as he kept asking me a lot of questions, almost like a curious kid in elementary school asking his teacher a question. It was very overwhelming as his barrage of questions didn't seem to end, eagerly awaiting an answer like a puppy dog.

"S-Sorry, b-but w-who are y-you a-again?" I politely asked him, without trying to sound blunt or too forward, "I d-didn't r-really understand w-what you j-just said."

"Oh, no problem, I'm told that a lot!" he giggled childishly, "I'm Wayne Fukumoto! Ultimate Knitter and all! Now, do you have a favorite color?"

 **WAYNE FUKUMOTO - ULTIMATE KNITTER**

I didn't fully understand what Wayne was talking about, but knowing the fact that he was a knitter made a bit of sense. His rapid fire questioning tired me out a little bit as I decided to end his ceaseless torrent of interrogative questions.

"W-Well I guess I l-like purple…" I told him firmly, trying to get him to back off for a bit.

"Ooh, what a royal color, much like a king!" he chirped happily, grabbing one of his knitting needles and jumping back onto the couch, immediately getting to work on something, "Don't worry Kazumi! I'll make you the bestest sweater you've ever seen!"

"O-Oh okay...t-that's not really n-necessary, W-Wayne," I sweatdropped at his eager beaver-like behavior.

"It's no biggie! I always make gifts for my friends and people I like!" he said, getting to work on knitting a sweater using bright purple yarn, "It'll be done in a jiffy!"

He was quite….expressive. I didn't mean that in a bad way, but his attitude was kind of all over the place and he seemed a bit too frantic, but in a more energetic fashion rather than a worried manner. I decided to leave the knitter and the other two to their devices as I took the opportunity to escape from the rec room with my sanity intact.

I left the room hurriedly as I stopped near a wall, taking a few small deep breaths. I had never felt so claustrophobic in my entire life; it was as if I was being trapped by an imaginary wall with how those three approached me. My mind almost broke down hearing them talk to me all at once and I felt like I was being ganged up on even though that clearly wasn't how it came off as. I've met even more people who called themselves Ultimates and I still didn't know what they meant by that.

This facility kept getting stranger and stranger with all these long winding hallways and large rooms, it felt as if there wasn't even an exit in sight. It gave me a massive headache and I felt sickly looking at the same thing over and over again, I just wanted to lie down and get some rest as I felt the life drain from my body. I walked down some more hallways, trying to avoid looking directly up due to the light shining down as I came across another door in the long hallway that was labelled 'Lounge'.

"H-Hopefully I can some r-rest inside of h-here…" I sleepily remarked, slowly starting to feel faint as I approached the door.

I twisted the metal handle open and sluggishly entered the room, on the verge of passing out. As I entered into a room, I noticed that it was just as different as the other rooms, but had pretty much the same layout with maybe a change in decor.

The interior had dark black carpet that felt soft like the dining room's and I was tempted to sleep on just that instead of the couches. The wallpaper was light orange with a sea like background and a bunch of manta rays and sea urchin surrounded by song notes in bubbles. The room had a very calming atmosphere to it. It had the same ocean view but looked to be surrounded by rocks and colorful coral, must have been a coral reef on top of the room.

The room was furnished with about three different purple couches, each with creme orange pillows neatly stacked. In the center of the room there was a wide glass coffee table with a bunch of magazines resting on it that I couldn't make out the titles of. There was a purple glass vase in the center of the table, filled with water and a bouquet of pink carnations. There seemed to be a mini-fireplace at the far end of the room, but it wasn't a traditional one as there was a TV monitor displaying an actual fire but I could feel some of the warmth pass through the screen. There were a few normal round lamps hanging from the ceiling that shone a natural looking blue light that made the room even more peaceful to relax in and gave it a soothing aura, almost like mood lighting.

I noticed two bookshelves that held a wide variety neatly-lined and color-coded books as well as a few decorative blue and green marble vases resting on top of each one. To finish off the coziness of the room, there were a few windows that displayed another ocean view with two purple mini-curtains that covered them if you wanted to rest inside. The room was the perfect place for anyone to enjoy a quiet moment's reprieve.

"I appreciate your kind words, but I'm not interested," said a female voice inside of the room.

"I'm only saying what's only facts," said a male voice inside of the room as well, "I wouldn't call you pretty, otherwise."

"While you say that, I can't help but feel your attempts to flirt with me are futile, in all honesty," the girl's voice was blunt and straight to the point.

"I like a girl with your kind of personality," the male's voice said, sounding a bit flirtatious in tone, "It just makes you look even more attractive as a person."

I turned to where the conversation was taking place and saw two people inside of the room already. They were a girl and a guy, the latter sitting down on one of the couches while the former was sitting in a black wheelchair opposite to the man.

The girl in the wheelchair had dark black hair that was very long and rested on the arms of her wheelchair and complimented her chocolate brown eyes. Her fair white skin had a bunch of freckles on it as it gave her a very girl-next-door kind of look. She had neatly trimmed fingernails that were filed shortm which probably meant she liked to look presentable and neat.

She wore a cream blouse with a white long-sleeved shirt underneath. She wore dark jeans and, funnily enough, she didn't wear any shoes. To complete her normal look, she wore a black headband in her hair as well as a black wrist watch around her left wrist. Her look was both simplistic as well as minimalistic and comfortable, giving her a business casual look or one of those lazy day looks.

The guy she was talking, on the other had, had a weird style in terms of clothing and his appearance made him stand out a bit more compared to the girl.

He had messy shoulder-length violet hair with very bright pink highlights that made him stand out even more in the room. To contrast with his hair, his eyes were olive-colored and almond-shaped and his skin was fair white. He had a scar on his left cheek and a mole underneath his right eye that made his rugged looks even more attractive. He was very skinny and looked thin but, as it is underneath his clothes, it was hard to tell.

He wore a white camouflage hoodie over a black shirt with pink scales patterned on the left side, contrasting his hoodie's simple fashion. On his legs were a pair of violet slacks with a single pink stripe running down the leg of each side and he wore a pair of black comfortable loafers. I noticed he wore a pair of black goggles around his neck and the fingerless gloves on his hands both looked handsewn and were probably one of those DIY projects or something similar.

He had a very odd sense of style, his purple hair and pants clashing with the hoodie, and to say it wasn't eye catching would be untrue. I bet he and Lev would have had a huge discussion over what he was wearing and the fashion designer would probably make him better clothes or something.

"O-Oh..p-pardon me...I didn't m-mean to interrupt.." I meekly said, trying to get their attention.

Both of them turned to face me as the girl in the wheelchair brushed back some of her hair and the guy with the violet hair looked at me with an almost intense stare in his eyes.

"Oh, hello there," the girl shook her head, cupping her hands in her lap, "Don't worry about it, I was just explaining to this guy that I wasn't interested in being his girlfriend."

"Well, that's rude," he stood up from his seat and pushed back some of his violet hair, "I was just being cordial is all, there's no need to brand me as some foul pervert."

"Uhuh," the girl in the wheelchair rolled her eyes at the man, "Anyway, it's very nice to meet you, Vivienne Morris, Ultimate Trader, but you can call me Viv."

 **VIVIENNE MORRIS - ULTIMATE TRADER**

"N-Nice to m-meet you Viv...I'm K-Kazumi T-T-Toriyako…" I hugged my teddy bear tightly, "I d-don't know w-what my talent i-is.."

"Oh, is that so?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at my comment, "Well then, I don't want to interfere with your personal affairs, I just wanted some time alone to gather my thoughts. That was the plan, until this guy started complimenting me unnecessarily."

"Like I said, I'm just stating the truth," he winked at her, giving two finger guns, then turning as he looked at me intensely, "And you, Kazumi, are just too precious for words."

"E-Excuse me?" I blushed at the violet haired guys' random remark.

"You heard me," he chuckled, approaching me as he patted me on my head and smiled proudly, "I just wish I could adopt you and make you my son, that's just how adorable you are."

"U-Uum...t-thanks I guess?" I sweatdropped at the man's overly friendly greeting, "W-Who are you?"

"Oh yeah, my bad," he took a step back and rubbed the back of his head, "Name's Torakusu Chihiro, Ultimate Sniper, call me Tora."

 **TORAKUSU CHIHIRO - ULTIMATE SNIPER**

"S-Sniper?" I asked, a bit confused by what he meant by that, "So y-you specialize in g-guns?"

"In more ways than one," he remarked, seeming a bit jittery and anxiously excited for some reason, "But let's call it that, I used to go to military school, so it's not really uncommon for me to practice and be good at shooting rifles"

"I-I see.." I nervously responded, a bit frightened about what he meant by that, "I-I just came in h-here to rest...I h-have a bit of a h-headache.."

"Is everything alright, Kazumi?" Vivienne asked, rolling her wheelchair over to me, pressing her hand to my forehead, "Did you take any medicine?"

"N-No, not r-really, V-Viv.." I shook my head at the trader, "I just w-w-woke up a little stiff is a-all…"

"I'd be more than happy to grab you some blankets, Kazumi," Torakusu insisted, looking at me with a worried look on his face, "You'll feel much better if you were warmed up."

I felt overwhelmed with gratitude as if I were a child being taken care of by his parents. The trader and sniper both had this worried look on their faces, as Vivienne instructed me to rest on one of the couches and Torakusu left the room to grab some blankets. I just met these people and they're already acting this kind to a stranger, it was oddly bizarre.

"While it might not be the best to move," she sighed, "I think it's good that you didn't faint on the floor."

"I g-guess...t-thank goodness for t-that…" I nodded weakly, noticing an accent in her voice, she must be a foreigner as well like Drago, Lev and Aphrodite.

She then wheeled her chair over and began typing something on a small black tablet-like device that she held in her hands. She seemed almost a bit too preoccupied with the device as she glued her eyes to the screen almost religiously.

"S-So what kind of t-trading do you d-do, Viv?" I asked her, hoping to make some small talk with her.

"Cryptocurrency, stocks, bonds, all that kind of stuff," she said, giving me a rather straightforward answer, "It's nothing impressive, but it's a living."

"I s-see…" I silently responded, feeling the awkward tension in the room getting even more tense as each minute passed by.

I guess she wasn't someone who was used to small talk. I was almost tempted to ask her about her situation with her wheelchair, but I was too scared of offending her so I kept my mouth shut instead. I wriggled around nervously, rested my backpack on the ground next to the couch and laid my body flat on one of the purple couches.

"Hey Viv, w-what's an U-Ultimate?" I asked her politely, noticing her putting down her phone in disappointment.

"Well, that's a rather loaded question, Kazumi," she turned to face me, moving her wheelchair around, "I'm still understanding it myself, but I guess it's about being the best of the best in your field, I suppose."

Her response seemed genuine from the way she spoke. The trader nervously twirled her hair around and sighed deeply, I guess speaking about this kind of thing hit home for her. She shook her head and gave a small confident-looking smile as the door to the lounge opened up. Torakusu had arrived back quickly, carrying a large purple folded blanket in his arms and walked over to us.

"Here you go, champ," he smiled, resting the blanket over my body, almost similarly to how a parent would to their child, "Don't want you getting cold now, heh."

"W-Why are you t-treating m-me like a c-child?" I asked the sniper, a bit confused by his spontaneous generosity, "A-And to s-someone you j-just met?"

Torakusu seemed almost offended by my question, tugging at his hand sewn black gloves and looking at me with a serious look in his eyes. It almost felt like I hit a nerve with him as I saw him recoil back in irritation, but then his mood switched back into an indifferent disposition.

"Don't know really," he shrugged his shoulders, brushing back some of his violet hair, "You just have that innocent look to you, I just can't help but want to keep it like that."

His rather cryptic words made me a bit uncomfortable, but kind of embarrassed at the same times as I started blushing intensely, feeling like someone special to him. A smirk formed on his face as he turned to the trader, fidgeting around in her wheelchair and playing with her phone.

"Why don't we let Kazumi rest now Viv," he told her, opening the door for her like any gentleman would, "Let's go find the others."

"Might as well," she rolled her eyes at the sniper, "Take care Kazumi, don't push yourself now."

"O-Okay.." I nodded my head weakly, watching as the two of them left the room, with Torakusu flipping off the lights in the room and letting me rest.

As I wriggled around on the couch, I looked at the teddy bear and held it up in my arms and stared back at it, the warm light coming from the above aquarium view dimly liting the room as I yawned loudly.

"I g-guess f-finding an e-exit in this p-place is going to t-take a while…" I thought in my head, tugging at the purple ribbon around the bear's neck, "W-Who exactly a-are these people? W-Why are t-they here?"

It was strange if anything. I woke up in this strange place, no memory of who I was or how I got here and I'm here resting when I should be scrambling to find an exit. Why do I feel so weak? I feel so tired all of a sudden and I don't understand why? Is this a side effect of whatever it was that stole my memory from me?

I gave up thinking about that for the time being as I hugged the teddy bear, feeling less alone as it's emotionless stare and oddly comforting body made me feel like I wasn't lonely. My body felt even more weak ever since waking up and I started to feel ten times as drowsy as my eyes started to slowly close. The intense weight pushing down my eyelids and the grogginess of walking around this headache induced aquarium only contributed to my sleepiness even more as I passed out almost instantly.

All I remember after that was my vision getting blurry and the cool waves of the ocean view lulling me to sleep. I felt lighter than air in that moment and all I could ask myself was something I'd never considered since waking up?

Was my memory stolen on purpose?

* * *

 **A/N:** Hello hello hello lovely people, how are you all doing? I hope you all are doing well and here we are with the first set of character intros for this reworked version of my second story!

I bet you weren't expecting this chapter to come out so soon, now did you XD, welp even I'm surprised at how fast I was able to get this new chapter out so soon as well. I've just been in a slightly energetic and motivated mood lately and a bout of inspiration hit me the other day and I kind of powered through these character intros like no one's business, it was insane XD.

I've been doing fine for these past few days. I've been struggling with a personal bout of mental health and depression lately due to my IRL issues and I wanted to take my mind off of it by writing my feelings in my stories. I just wanted to say thank you all so much for supporting me through my tough times and sticking with my stories even with my rocky and shaky upload schedule. I know it's a long journey, but it honestly makes my day to see you all excited to read my chapters X3. As a dedicated writer, it means a lot to me that you all like my stories and are awaiting them, thank you all so much.

Enough rambling, I hope you all enjoyed these first set of intros, the last eleven intros are coming soon, but there is no way I'm going to make the next one as quickly as I did this one, I'm not that good XD. It will take me some time to make, but I'm even more pumped to get this story and I hope you all enjoy it when it comes out.

That's all I have to say, I hope you all have a lovely day, night, holiday or whatever it is you're celebrating and I will see you all in the next upload or whenever I decide to post next.

Also Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone out there, I hope you all have a nice vacation and stay safe out there, I hope you all are doing well and I will see you lovely readers, authors and otaku later.

Bye bye!


	3. Prologue: Salty Character Intros Pt 2

**Editors** : **Crimson Spider Lily & Lupus Overkill**

* * *

 _"Happy Birthday…..son….so...proud of you.."_

 _"Here you go…..you're such a….good…"_

 _"I believe in you…...fight it…"_

 _"Being emotional…..is a sign….strength.."_

 _"You're…..not….pathetic…"_

 _"You exist….you matter….stop beating...yourself up...about it"_

* * *

I tried my best to rest inside the dimly lit lounge, however I didn't feel at all comfortable being alone in a dark room by myself nor did I feel an inkling of security. My body tossed and turned all over the soft orange couch cushions and I wriggled around in the blanket Tora gave me, trying to get my feet comfortable and body well adjusted, as if I were a caterpillar wiggling around in its transparent cocoon. I was miffed and had too many worries building up in my mind all at once, each one a scenario of how sour things could turn.

My aching body felt even stiffer on the soft couch than when I rested on the floor and my head was throbbing intensely, the seeping pain pounded against my brain as I winced from the overall painful sensation. I kept hearing voices in my head. I felt like I was being watched the entire time. I slept as if a million eyes were trained directly at me from some secret location.

"Agh!" I grunted uncomfortably, clutching my head tiredly, "O-Oww…"

The iridescent blue lighting in the room only made my headache worse than it was before and the fire on the TV monitor irritated my eyes as I stared directly at it, illuminating the room with a weirdly unnerving yet calming atmosphere. The orange flames sizzled and crisped against the electronic firewood tenderly as the blue and orange red lights reflected against each other and the room turned a sickly green color that made me feel nauseous.

The strange aura of the room increased twofold, the intense feeling that someone was watching me from afar lurked over my shoulder like a menacing shadow. I felt as if some shadowy, ominous figure were staring directly at me from some unknown location. The faint light coming in from above made the room feel not as lonely with the fish swimming above my head, but I didn't really think much of it at the time. It was the one thing that made this room soothing, if only a little.

"I-Is someone there?" I nervously asked, hoping that there wasn't anyone inside watching me.

The awkward silence in the room lingered as I sat up on the couch and rubbed my eyes sleepily. I yawned loudly, blinking a few times to register my surroundings as I came face to face with something resting on top of the glass coffee table.

"W-Wah!?" I jumped in fright, the blanket flying off of my feet and landing on the carpet, "W-Where did t-this come from?"

I squinted in the faint lighting and noticed the item placed on the table; it was that of a porcelain doll. The doll itself was wearing a dark blue victorian era dress with a ruffled skirt, poofy long sleeves and a lot of black ribbons on top of the black lace work. It wore black mary janes on its feet with white knee socks. Its porcelain white skin looked smooth like glass, its eyes staring at me with its round beady blue eyes, pink rosy blush adorned its cheeks with a dark red lipstick painted on its lips elegantly. Its dark black hair was curly and danced playfully on its lower back as a dark blue bonnet hat rested on top of it's head with a black ribbon tied underneath its chin.

The doll was positioned perfectly, sitting directly as it faced me specifically, as if it were watching over me as I slept. It was intricately designed with details in the dress' pattern and the neatness of its skin, but the overall creepiness of it was apparent, since most dolls that looked like that were generally considered daunting, if left alone. The question I wondered was, who left this doll on the table in the first place?

"S-Strange…" I grabbed my teddy bear and rested it next to the doll, noticing they were the same height, "W-Who made t-this?"

I paused for a brief second, analyzing the mysterious doll as I stood up from my seat and went over to turn on the lights to get a better look at it.

"What are you doing?" asked a mysterious deep voice, "You dare extinguish the eternal darkness as to shed light on the the all omnipresent doll!?"

I hesitated briefly out of fear falling on the floor and hitting my head against the wall near the light switch. The sudden voice that emerged from the shadows had spooked me; I rubbed the back of my head and felt the ensuing headache worsen, getting even more painful by the second. In all the madness, I heard a pair of feet shuffling across the floor as if there was someone else in the room too, lurking in the dark shadows.

"W-Who's t-there!?" I panickedly asked, fearing who was hiding inside the room, "W-Where a-are y-you!?"

"You do not comprehend what you cannot see, that is why you fear it, human," the deep voice announced, sounding female in tone, "A slave to the light as you fumble around in my domain."

As the mysterious voice continued monologuing, I nervously shook, stuck in place like a statue, swishing my hand around for the light switch and felt my fingers touch the handle. I instinctively switched it on as the blue lighting in the room grew brighter, revealing someone hiding behind one of the couches, crouched behind its back and hunched over as if they were a scared animal.

"Curses! Foiled by conventional lighting methods!" the female voice shouted, cursing at the lights, "Darn these aquatic sheep dancing lavishly deodorant!"

I nervously sat underneath the light switch, tilting my head in confusion at the voice's increasingly unintelligible words. It didn't sound anything like regular human speech and the amount of words being tossed around made for a confusing mix of scared anxiety and grandiloquent word play.

"I will not submit! You hear me, you accursed harbinger of darkness!" she screamed, emerging from her crouched hiding spot and throwing her hands up at the ceiling like a cartoon villain cursing at their arch nemesis, "The fools dancing wildly play leapfrog tag sitting in the dust!"

As she stood up, she shook her head defiantly, picked up the creepy doll and carried it in her arms as she slowly tried searching the room for something. It seemed she was missing something, but I was too nervous to ask what it was, but I did get a good look at what she looked like.

She had bright dyed red hair that was short but curly and went halfway down her neck; it looked messy and unkempt but still presentable and flattering to look at. Her eyes stood out the most; instead of a regular white iris or cornea, she wore what looked to be full black contacts that covered each eyeball making them look soleless and lifeless, like a doll's eyes. She wore heavy black eyeliner, but it was messily ruined and made her look like she had cried recently with how much of the product dripped down the sides of her cheeks. There was a single black teardrop underneath her right eye which gave her a more whimsical look, accompanied with deep red lipstick painted on her lips.

Upon further inspection, she had a very mature looking face, which almost made me assume she was older than she let on, maybe she was in her twenties. She had a very curvy body, that was fairly skinny but didn't look underweight and it suited her very tall stature; she was probably a few inches taller than me. Her skin was an olive complexion, but looked darker in the bright lighting. Her fingernails were painted a bright red as to match her bright hair color as they complimented each other perfectly. She was oddly attractive and her entire presence was alluring to look at, which wasn't much when her outfit made her stand out twice as much as Takara's.

She wore a striped black and white corset with red around the edges, that looked almost cinched around her waistline. There was a fluffy black skirt with a transparent red layers over it that gave her a more gothic aesthetic that accentuated her entire outfit. I noticed she wore black leggings with red hearts on the knees that were cut off after that, with red high heel platform shoes with bows on the straps. She wore what looked like black ribbons around her sleeves that added to her gothic attire with two black bracelets on both of her wrists. On each bracelet and on one her shoes were white strings that were attached to what looked to be a wooden cross, painted black, that trailed behind her on the floor like a wedding veil or sorts, as if she were a puppet or some stringed marionette doll that had come to life.

To complete her very circus-like fashion, she wore a red pillbox hat with a black veil covering half of her face on top of her head with a black feather stuck inside of the pillbox. Lastly, there was a black choker around her neck with a bright red ruby brooch in the middle of it, which only added to her very doll-like aesthetic and look.

I was perplexed by her unusual and very eccentric attire. She was dressed like a gothic lolita, but had the overall concept of a living doll, with how much ribbons and strings were laced around her body. If her skin was a few shades lighter she would have been the total package deal, but I'm not one to complain about what others' dress like.

"U-Um...e-excuse me?" I called out to her, trying to get her attention, "W-What are you d-doing?"

"Are you the one who conquered the darkness, light bearer?" she turned to face me, hugging the doll in her arms with a stoic look plastered on her face, "Answer me!"

"U-Uh...um...I uh.." I was too baffled to respond, as the gothic girl looked at me intensely with her blacked out eyes, staring into my soul with a listless and passive gaze as if she were trying to steal it.

"Well?" she patiently waited, tapping her foot, "Care to explain your intended deceit and tactful control, light bearer?"

"I t-think so…" I responded to her, a bit confused by what she meant, "W-Who are you?"

The gothic girl rested the doll back on the table, arranging it next to my teddy bear as she adjusted the veil over her face and posed with her right hand over her face and her left arm resting underneath her shoulder. She reminded me of one of those method actors or cosplayers who get too into their roles and demand others treat them like that character. It was weird, but to each their own I suppose.

"The darkness is my omnipresent rival, forever attached to a lowly being such as I," she continued aggrandizing herself with very weird and verbose dialect, "I am Moriko Ishii, Daughter of Darkness herself! I have been gifted the title of Ultimate Doll Maker, as was prophesied by the dark forces at play."

 **MORIKO ISHII - ULTIMATE DOLL MAKER**

"Oh uh...h-hello M-Moriko," I greeted her cautiously, unsure if she was still hiding something up her sleeve, "Y-You're a doll m-maker?"

"Yes I am!" she smiled passively, posing weirdly with her hands contorted in weird ways that I wasn't sure was humanly possible, "The darkness blessed me with the ability to create these servants you call dolls, they are the perfect army for the darkness!"

The doll maker continued talking as if she were an anime character, taking the creepy victorian doll from the table and placing it front of my face. I nervously backed up against the wall as she practically pressed the doll's body against my face.

"I made this doll as to protect sleeping souls from wandering into the clutches of demonic forces!" she claimed, putting her hand over her mouth and covered a stoic frown, "This room gives off a very negative energy, the darkness has warned me of this."

Confused by her inane ramblings, I slinked over to the couch where my stuff rested and sat properly on the cushions, taking my teddy bear and zipping up my backpack. I did it as quietly as I could, without meaning to leave her hanging, but I was too freaked out to respond. My initial instinct was to immediately leave as soon as possible as she freaked me out with her wild and mumbled speech and I felt kind of uncomfortable around her.

"W-Well it was nice m-meeting you, M-Moriko…" I put the backpack over my shoulder and hugged my teddy bear tightly, "B-But I n-need to g-go.."

"I see…" she turned to face me, eyeing me with a rather stoic gaze that seemed to contradict her expressive words, "Well then, I shall leave you to your mortal whims….but fear not, the darkness will always be watching over you...just when you least expect it."

As the doll maker finished her rather epic monologue, she flicked the light switch off, took the doll from off of the table and crawled back behind the couch. She began mumbling something to herself, but I was too confused and eager to leave that I didn't really pay it much thought. I twisted the door handle, leaving her to do whatever it was she was hoping to achieve and exited back into the long winding aquatic hallway.

I shook my head in irritation, feeling the loud ringing noise zinging in my ears as I walked down the long hallways of the walk in aquarium. The more I kept searching, the more I noticed that this place was bigger than I imagined it was. Each aquatic hallway provided the same layout, the same clear view of what looked to be a picturesque ocean and there seemed to not be many rooms in this place that warranted differentiation or originality.

"W-Where do I g-go now?" I wondered, perplexed by the winding corridors and ubiquitous view of the water, "Agh!"

My vision went blurry almost immediately as I dropped the teddy bear I was holding, my body hit the tiled floor in a sudden fell swoop and I started shaking uncontrollably. I couldn't move my body, my mind was unresponsive and I couldn't feel anything nor move my arms or legs to prevent it. I blacked out after that, not recalling what took place after what I thought was a seizure induced attack.

I lost track of time while unconscious. My body was numb and I felt a faint draft pass through the room as I awoke suddenly. I gasped, my eyes opening up as I found myself laying down on something soft and comfortable, almost fluffy like sheep's wool. The faint light in the room was almost blinding. Covering my eyes with my right arm, I noticed that someone had put a blanket over my person while I was rested. The question that ran through my mind was how did I even get here and who put me here?

"Ah, it seems he's finally waking up," said an indistinct voice, probably male, "Hey buddy, you still with us?"

"I'm surprised he's not dead," remarked an indistinct voice, this time it was female, "Lucky him."

I blinked slowly, acclimating to the new lighting as I sat up slowly. I tried turning my head around delicately, realizing that I was sleeping on a couch much like the one that was in the lounge where I met Vivienne, Torakusu and Moriko. I rubbed my head slightly, massaging the pain away as a hand extended a glass cup filled with water to me.

"Are you alright?" asked the male, with a solicitous tone in his voice, "Can you hear me?"

I nodded my head weakly, shakily taking the glass of water from the stranger and sipped it nervously. I was too tired and flustered to question the person who gave it to me nor did I have much thought that they might have spiked my drink with something harmful or lethal.

"That's good! Phew, thought we'd lost you there for a sec, buddy," the male voice reassured me, rubbing my back tenderly.

"Not like we had a choice," the female voice added, sounding very unenthusiastic in tone, "But you just had to be the Good Samaritan, didn't you?"

"Not now," the male voice shushed her, "Hey, buddy, can you see me?"

I held the glass of half empty water in my hands, turning to face the person who gifted it to me. My eyes had fully adjusted to the new environment, as I noticed it was exactly the same as the previous lounge I was in before, could this have been the same room? Or was this another lounge that I missed the first time?

I gave up trying to figure that out as I took note of the two people inside of the room, a guy and a girl. The guy was sitting near me, looking at me with concerned eyes and a worried look on his face.

He had cobalt blue colored hair that was tied up in a short spiky ponytail; with two thin bangs framing the sides of his face, his eyes complimenting his hair as they both shared the same shade of dark blue. His skin was fair and looked almost tan, it looked more natural as if he normally sunbathed or worked outdoors. He looked to be a few inches taller than me, maybe around average height for a guy and he had a very lanky build, but I could see some defined muscle tone in his build.

He wore a tight long sleeved black shirt with a white undershirt with a giant red cross on the front and extended all the way to the shirt's edges in a rectangular like fashion, which only highlighted his athletic like physique even more. Over those two shirts, he wore a traditional sky blue haori short jacket with a defined wave pattern that made it look like ocean waves. He wore black plants with black socks and waraji wicker sandals on his feet hanging around the ends of his pants, like the kind a country fisherman would wear when catching fish. Lastly, he wore leather black fingerless gloves that completely covered his arms and he appeared to be chewing on what looked to be a sharp shelled crab stick, like something a tough guy from an anime would chew on to look even more menacing and tough.

Unlike the guy, the girl, sitting on the opposite couch facing me, didn't look too amused to be watching over me as she I came face to face with a disinterested scowl plastered on her face.

She had long straight coral pink colored hair that was fashioned into a silky ponytail. Her skin was olive colored and she had a straight like build with small hips and a small chest. She had sharply narrowed, fiery amber eyes with thin eyebrows that gazed directly at me and her lips were rosebud shaped.

She wore a baggy, unzipped, sea green jacket with the arm cuffs tightened above her hands with two pockets on the sides of the jacket. Underneath the jacket, she wore a mint green shirt that showed her midriff, but modestly covered her breasts as to not reveal too much of skin.

She wore denim shorts that went above her knees and brown worn out sandals on her feet, with a few handmade wristbands around her right wrist; one of them spelling out a name that I couldn't quite make out from afar.

The two of them were very different in terms of appearance, but they both sported very ocean inspired looks, given their very simple looking styles. They both must have some specialty in some kind of water based occupation, or in this instance, they must have been Ultimates like Yumeji had mentioned previously.

"Y-Yeah…" I nervously responded to the blue haired guy.

"Awesome!" he smiled happily, "Had me worried there for a second, I had high hopes that you'd be alright!"

"That's not what I saw," the coral haired girl interjected, crossing her arms uninterestedly, "You were freaking out so much, trying to get things under control that you ended up dragging this twig to the lounge and forcing me to help lug him all the way here."

"Do you always have to ruin the mood with your pessimism?" he turned to face the girl, giving her a disappointed look, "He could have died, if we didn't jump in to help!"

"Whatever, I'm just being candid here," she shrugged, brushing off the clearly upset guy's words, "Next time, don't expect me to be so generous to a complete stranger."

The two of them continued bickering like an old married couple, as I sat there in silence. I stared at the water inside of the glass as I sipped it again, noticing that my teddy bear, backpack and bowtie were all resting on the coffee table in the center of the lounge. I also noticed that my shirt collar was unbuttoned and that it revealed a small portion of my sickly pale chest.

"Anyway, I hope you didn't mind us administering first aid," the spiky haired guy remarked, rubbing the back of his head, "You weren't responding and I just couldn't stand to see you squirming around like that, it was almost painful to watch."

"N-Not at all…" I anxiously responded, unsure of what to say to him, "W-Who are you? F-Forgive me for a-asking."

"Oh right, sorry about that!" the guy chuckled, "I was so flustered that I forgot to introduce myself properly, my bad!"

The blue haired guy stood up from kneeling down next to my person, removed the crab stick from his mouth and dusted off his haori jacket.

"Name's Sato Shizuo," he confidently smiled, "I'm the Ultimate Lifeguard, nice to meet ya!

 **SATO SHIZUO - ULTIMATE LIFEGUARD**

He's a lifeguard? Well that explains his red cross shirt and his rather seaside casual attire. I never expected him to be an Ultimate as well, but given the people I've met so far, they all share the same common trait of being an "Ultimate Talent", which still made me curious as to what they meant by that. I didn't think much about it then, since he saved my life.

"T-Thank you S-Sato...for h-helping me…" I nervously thanked him, shivering inside the blanket, "You didn't h-have to d-d-do that for a c-complete s-stranger like m-me.."

"Tell me about it," the girl rolled her eyes, adding her two cents, "What a waste of time.."

"It's no problem, uhm…" he trailed off, probably waiting to hear me introduce myself as well.

"Oh s-sorry, I'm K-Kazumi Toriyako…" I said, still unsure of the fake name I was given, "I d-don't r-remember my talent…"

"No worries Kazumi," he patted me on my back, "Even if I wasn't a lifeguard, I still would have helped you out regardless, it's just how I am as a person and I'd help you or anyone else in a heartbeat."

"Good for you, do you need a shiny gold medal or something?" the girl continued to add her snide remarks, "Stop acting like the hero, we get it already."

"If you're so disinterested in our conversation, why don't you just leave?" Sato raised an eyebrow at the girl, who at this point was annoyed just being in the lifeguard's general vicinity, "Thank you for helping me regardless."

"You know what, I might as well just do that," she huffed out a tired sigh, "Have fun getting to know each other, I need a break from all the craziness."

The coral haired girl proceeded to make her way out of the lounge, heading for the exit as I forgot to ask her one important thing. Despite her peeved state of mind, I needed to know who she was as well, that way I can thank her later.

"E-Excuse me, m-miss," I asked, nervously sputtering out the words, "I didn't c-catch your name…"

The girl then turned to face me, her amber eyes fiercely locked on mine as she gave me an unimpressed glare. It seemed me asking her name, only made her even more agitated than she was already.

"Ushio Isobe, Ultimate Surfer, goodbye.." she briefly spoke, before leaving and slamming the door behind her.

 **USHIO ISOBE - ULTIMATE SURFER**

The door's loud sound broke the peaceful silence in the room, as the surfer left without as much as a proper goodbye or explanation as to what was going on. I guess she wasn't as chatty as the lifeguard, which made the two of them complete polar opposites in both personality and attitude.

"Don't mind her," Sato apologized for her behavior, "She's just tired from all the excitement is all, she'll come around soon."

"I s-suppose so…" I sweated nervously, wiping a bit of sweat from my brow as I sipped the last few drops of water from my cup, "T-Thank you a-again, Sato…"

"Like I said dude, there's no need to thank me," he gave me a thumbs up, "Just doing my job is all! Saving a life is more than enough of a reward in my books!"

I gave the lifeguard a small smile back, nodding meekly as I was impressed by his rather unexpected generosity. I mean most lifeguards, that I can recall, don't care as much about their job as he did, so his optimistic and caring attitude really made me feel like my life mattered and that he really did enjoy his line of work. I didn't feel as nervous when talking with him as I did with some of the others I met so far, almost as if he were like a big brother figure.

"Well then, I'm going out for a bit," he headed towards the door, dimming the lights a tad, "I've left a couple of medicine pills on the table next to your stuff, just in case you get another headache."

"I a-appreciate it, t-thanks," I remarked, looking at the aforementioned pills on the table, "See y-you later, S-Sato…"

"Later Kaz, make sure to get some rest before heading out!" he bade me goodbye, closing the door behind him quietly as I was left alone in the lounge.

As the stillness in the room pervaded, I looked up and spotted a few more colorful fish swimming above my head, all blissfully unaware of the large sharks hovering above them. I rested my head back on the couch cushion, slowly feeling the calming melody of the ocean waves trickle into my ears. It lulled me into a false sense of security as I yawned loudly, feeling my body relax as the headache disappeared and the stiff pain that travelled up my body, almost vanished as if it was all in my head or something.

"Curiouser a-and c-curiouser…" I mumbled to myself, blinking passively as I spent the last few minutes staring at the ceiling and trying to fall back asleep.

I turned my head and stared at the teddy bear staring back at me, its black eyes gazing into my eyes longingly; almost as if it wanted to come to life and devour my soul or something. I took it off from the table, hugged it tightly as I felt its furry warmth enter my body and fill me with a small amount of courage.

I tried wrapping my mind around why I was kidnapped, if I was even kidnapped in the first place. Why would I come to a strange place like this to begin with? Was there a reason for me to be here? I'm not an Ultimate or whatever the others called themselves, so what am I doing here?

"I should g-get some a-air," I yawned loudly, feeling the comfort of blanket wrap me tighter and tighter, "I m-might as w-well test t-t-this medicine o-out, hopefully it's n-not dangerous o-or lethal.."

I shook my head determinedly, tossing the blanket to the side and retrieved my items off of the table. As much as Sato meant well, I needed to escape no matter what, even if I was in no condition to do so. I tried my best to shake off the grogginess, but as I reached for my backpack, the slithering pain from my headache crawled its way back.

"O-Oww…" I winced, gritting my teeth and rubbing my head, "W-What is c-causing this?"

After organizing my stuff, rather sloppily at that, I exited the lounge groggily and left the light off as to save power and not arouse any suspicion. I walked down a hallway and tried my best to find a nearby water source like a fountain or sink; eventually coming across what looked to be a restroom.

The doors were both wooden and painted a vividly bright lilac color with a blue bear figure on one side of the door with a black M on the stomach of the bear and a pink bear figure on the other one with a black F in the center of the stomach as well. I guess it was an indicator of which bathroom was for which gender, so that was sort of helpful.

I twisted the door handle and entered the boys' bathroom, hoping that the sink water was potable enough for drinking. As I entered inside the restroom, I was greeted with the same cartoonish, yet elegant, interior design like the large dining room and lounge rooms.

On the walls there were a few multi-colored seahorses swimming above clams with pearls inside all in a sea of aquamarine painted colors meant to emulate ocean waves. There were about three toilet stalls all with closed doors painted a light blue color and stocked with about three rolls of toilet paper to each one. There were about three sinks as well; all plated with a white ceramic basin with slightly rusted steel pipes with both hot and cold handles, soaps in the shape of white seashells resting inside glass fish shaped soap dishes resting on top of the blue and white marble countertops. Not only that, there were liquid hand soap dispensers with a weird purple soapy liquid inside three of the dispensers next to the sink, as well as wooden basket filled to the brim with about eight white rolled up towels resting inside of the basket and lined up neatly against each other. The grey and black marbled tiled floor was so clean and sparkly that you could almost eat food off it without contracting germs or bacteria. There were about three urinals both scrubbed clean to perfection with no semblance of yellow grime on the ceramic surface, the wall lights were shaped like red crabs emanating a faint fluorescent white light that made the room appear more atmospheric and whimsical. Finally there was a green garbage bin in the left corner of the bathroom next to the exit, as it seemed that there was a fresh new bag inside and there wasn't any trash inside.

I was astonished by how immaculate and fancy this bathroom looked, every inch of it looked almost unbelievable to human conception, a clean public restroom. I was so amazed by how pristine the room was, I failed to realize that one of the sinks was running and that there was another person present in the room as well.

I shook myself out of my temporary daze and noticed someone washing their hands thoroughly, using one of the seashell soaps and patiently humming a tune to themselves. What also took me by surprise was not that there was another person inside the bathroom, but that the person in question was inside of the guy's bathroom in the first place.

"W-What is a g-g-girl doing in h-here!?" I mentally freaked out, taking note of the person inside of the bathroom with me.

The person in question had long blonde hair that went down to their shoulders, their green round eyes contrasted with their light tan skin and clear complexion. Upon first glance they looked to be a few inches shorter than me, but due to the shoes they were wearing it was hard to tell. They had a slender frame, almost skinny and effeminate upon further inspection and they appeared to be wearing a little bit of makeup on their face.

The girl wore a white blouse with a blue school jacket left unbuttoned with a small crest of an unfamiliar school symbol on the left side of it. She wore a blue skirt that goes down and ends just above her knees and she wore white and pink elevator shoes, which was what made me double take at how tall she was. To finish off her simple, yet cute look she wore a big pink bow that was fashioned at the back of her head to highlight her girly charm even more.

Unsure of what to do or how to approach the girl, I mustered up the little courage I had and went over to her. I hope she was just confused and didn't intentionally walk into the boy's bathroom on purpose.

"U-Um excuse m-me miss…" I nervously mumbled, tapping her on the shoulder.

"Hmm?" the girl turned to face me, her humming ceased as I noticed her rather cute facial features and did a curt double take, "Is there a problem?"

Her voice was feminine sounding, if not slightly deep for a girl, but who was I to judge. I steeled myself mentally, afraid to confront her about her being in the wrong bathroom, but I managed to get the next few words out, with less of a stutter.

"I-It seems you're i-in the wrong b-bathroom, miss.." I pointed out to her, "T-This is the b-boys bathroom...the g-girls bathroom is the next r-room over..."

She then continued staring at me, processing what she just heard as a small smile formed on her face, almost as if I uttered a corny joke or something. Her rather light hearted laugh made me even more anxious, as if I was wrong to jump to conclusions or if I was the one who had walked into the wrong bathroom instead.

"So?" she said indifferently, adjusting her skirt, "Are you sure you're not in the wrong bathroom, mister?"

Confused by what she had just said, I shook my head and proceeded to head out the door to reaffirm that this was the boy's bathroom and that I didn't sleepily walk into the girl's by mistake. The girl stood there, wiping her hands with one of the towels, as I exited the restroom briefly and noticed that the pink bear door was next to the blue one, which meant I was in the right restroom.

"I'm sorry t-to say t-this…" I hesitated for a moment, gulping nervously, "B-But this is the b-boys bathroom, m-miss…"

Instead of realizing that she was in the wrong bathroom and blushing in embarrassment, the girl instead continued giggling, covering her mouth with her hand and stifling a bit of uncontrollable laughter. I seemed to have missed whatever joke she was amused by, given that I was both nervous as well bewildered by what was so funny.

"In that case, then it seems we're both in the correct bathroom," she cheerfully stated, smiling rather mischievously.

It took a few seconds for my brain to process what she had just told me, before my face turned pale with fear and my skin turning bright red, as I put two and two together. The revelation clicked in my head all at once as if a flood of knowledge had burst out and filled my brain with the answers that I didn't ask for.

"W-W-WHAT!?" I shouted, almost loudly, "Y-You're a b-b-bo…"

Before I could finish my sentence, the person put their finger over my mouth, smiling cheerfully with faint blush on their cheeks and a grin that made me twice as uncomfortable.

"You don't have to say it, I am indeed one hundred percent a boy!" they stated, almost matter of factly at that, "Took you by surprise didn't I?"

"U-Uh...I...uhmmm," I was too dumbfounded to formulate words as the person, I assumed to be a girl, turned out to be a boy this entire time, "Y-Yeah…"

"In that case, I should probably introduce myself properly," he giggled mischievously, brushing back his blonde hair and twirling around in his skirt, rather gayfully, "I'm Sakai Shojiro, Ultimate Hair Stylist, I'd say it was a pleasure to meet you, but then I'd just be lying through my teeth."

 **SAKAI SHOJIRO - ULTIMATE HAIR STYLIST**

After the initial shock, I had no words for what he just said. From head to toe, he looked like a genuine girl, even his voice was very feminine and soprano like, almost as if he missed puberty or something. Assuming he just preferred dressing up like a girl then he must have been a crossdresser, but given his talent that wasn't the case, so I guess it's something else entirely like some kind of phase in his life.

"Aww, don't leave a girl hanging like that," he teased, still keeping up the playful charade, "Shouldn't you be introducing yourself, big boy? It's rather rude of you to inconvenience me like that without reciprocating the greeting as well."

"O-Oh uh! I uh…" I stumbled around, trying to prepare myself mentally, "I'm K-Kazumi T-Toriyako...I uh...don't r-remember my t-talent.."

"Uhuh…" Sakai remarked, looking at me with an indifferent expression, "Well I don't really care, its of no concern to me."

"I s-see…" I mumbled, sweat dropping at the hair stylist's rather chill response to me saying I'm not an Ultimate, "Well then Kazumi, did you by chance come in here to use the bathroom? Or was your intention to come in and spy on me, you pervert?"

"E-Excuse me? P-Pervert?!" I recoiled at his rather curt and randomly accusatory comment, "A-Aren't we b-b-both boys!?"

"Yes, but that doesn't change the fact you burst in here and inconvenienced me while I was doing my business," Sakai shook his finger in the air, clicking his tongue at me rather jeeringly.

"I just c-came in here t-to take m-medicine," I held out the orange bottle of medication as proof, "I j-just needed w-water…"

"Mhm, yeah right, tell it to someone who'll actually buy that story," he scoffed, crossing his arms in a smugly amused fashion, "You're probably just some filthy junkie they picked off the street, and that bottle is actually filled with cocaine tablets or something."

I was both appalled and flabbergasted by the hair stylist's very slanderous words as well as sudden change in attitude. One second he's making fun of me for supposedly walking into the wrong bathroom, and now he's accusing me of being a drug addict and some kind of peeping Tom?! How did that make any sense?! What was his problem anyway?

"I'm s-sure this is j-just a playful m-m-misunderstanding…" I tried to assuage his suspicions, "T-This is j-just headache medicine...b-besides I'm n-not a pervert!"

"Not yet anyways," Sakai snickered to himself, dusting off his skirt, "But wait till the others hear you were spying on a defenseless girl changing her panties in the bathroom."

"B-But aren't you're a g-guy?" I tilted my head in confusion, "T-That makes n-no sense.."

"That may be so, but I've yet to tell the others, so I might as well have a little fun while I'm at it!" he playfully teased, having a sudden light bulb moment.

"W-What do you m-mean?" I asked him, a bit perplexed by what he meant, "W-What fun?"

"You'll see soon enough if you're able to catch up to me," he mischievously smirked, his smile curling from ear to ear, "Think fast!"

Before I could respond to his accusatory and baseless statements, the hair stylist threw his used hand towel at me, slapping me in the face as he made a break for it. For someone wearing elevated shoes, he's rather agile and fast, which made me even more flustered as he exited the bathroom. I dropped the towel on the floor, grabbed my things and headed out in pursuit of him, hoping that he wasn't going to slander me further.

"Catch me if you can, loser!" Sakai shouted from across the hall, as he headed for the dining room doors.

My fight or flight instincts kicked in immediately, as I pelted my body as fast I could and weakly tried running after the hair stylist, my legs started tiring out from sudden stress and the jolt of adrenaline rushing throughout my body. Sakai merrily skipped over to the door, stopping by the entrance and patiently awaiting my arrival, as I braced myself and tried to stop running. The momentum from my body pushed me faster and faster as Sakai extended his leg out near the entrance.

"Watch your step!" Sakai giggled, watching me run towards him like a tired horse injected with a speed enhanced drug.

As I skidded against the tiled floor, I ended up tripping over his leg and rolled into the dining room entrance. I did a complete barrel roll and tumbled across the room, slamming my head into what felt like a hardwood surface.

"Woah!" someone shouted loudly, as I tumbled inside and hit my head against the bar counters' base, "Watch where you're going!"

"O-Oww…" I moaned in pain, my vision blurry and turned upside down as I noticed that there was a large group of people inside of the dining room, "Ah...m-my head…"

"What's going on?" asked an unfamiliar voice, sounding confused the commotion.

"Someone came tumbling inside here," responded another voice, this time sounding a bit familiar, "It seems it might be some kind of race gone wrong or something."

"No shit, sherlock," grumbled an angry voice, "And of course, it's that idiot from earlier who bashed my face in."

"Mind your tone, Kimiya," a female voice reproached the angry voice sternly, "There's no need for that kind of language."

"Are you okay?" asked another unfamiliar voice, probably aimed towards me as I was too hurt to respond back.

"Oww..Ow..m-my head," I flinched in pain, rubbing my head as I twisted my body and managed to sit upright and facing everyone in the room, "W-Why does t-this keep happening?"

"Oh my god! He's bleeding!" a female voice remarked loudly, everyone's gaze turned towards me.

Freaked out by her statement, I noticed that my nose was dripping blood as a few dark red droplets stained the dark blue carpet and turned parts of it purple. In a frenzied panic, I tried searching for a tissue to stop the bleeding as I turned to face the group of people before me; some faces I've seen and a few I've never encountered before.

I saw Dragomir, Yumeji, Iena, Kimiya, Wayne, Aphrodite, Lev, Torakusu, Vivienne and three more people I didn't recognize. I started feeling faint as I spotted Sakai slinking into the dining room as everyone was distracted looking concerned for me.

"What seems to be the fuss, Kazumi?" Iena asked, pushing back strands of her blue hair, "Are you alright? You seem to have taken a nasty nose dive there."

"You look like you've seen a wild beast?" Dragomir noticed, raising an eyebrow, "Are ya okay?"

"I uh.." I mumbled out, pinching my nose, before getting interrupted by another voice.

"It's totally not okay!" Sakai cried, doing his best to imitate a girl's voice, "Kazumi is a full blown pervert, I caught him spying on me in the girls bathroom!"

Alerted by the hair stylist's voice, my immediate reaction was to defend myself against his heinous and malicious words. I had no idea what I did to provoke him, but it seemed he was doing solely to get a rise out of me or make the others hate me or something.

"W-What! N-No I'm not!" I cried defensively, sniffing my nose as to prevent more blood loss, "H-He's lying! I d-didn't d-do anything like t-that!"

Sakai locked eyes with mine, doing his best to fake tears as a few clear drops slid down the sides of his cheeks, some of his makeup running down the side of his face in the process. He completely faked all of his emotions and now he's here acting like I'm some sick sexual predator, when he's the one who instigated the argument.

"You filthy asshole!" Kimiya yelled, clenching his fists in anger, "Not only are you a clumsy idiot, but you're also a pervert too!"

"Mr. Iwasaki, please! Let's be civil and talk about this calmly," Iena silenced him, slapping him on the back of his head, "We shouldn't jump the gun here and assume the worst of people."

"I don't know, the poor lady is in tears," Dragomir looked at Sakai with worry in his eyes, "Anyone who'd dare harm a woman is no good to me."

"Are we really sure she can be trusted?" Vivienne mused over the situation in her head, "I mean this all seems a bit too fishy to me, I just can't put my finger on it."

"So he's not just an attention stealer, but he's also a creep too, how disgusting," Aphrodite sneered at me, glaring ice cold daggers at me, "How totally uncool and creepy."

"Do you guys honestly believe Sakai can be trusted?" Tora interjected, fixing his camo hoodie, "I mean she could be lying to us for all we know! Ever thought of that? I say she's lying."

"Why would she lie about that, sweetie?" Lev asked, brushing back his pink hair, "While I never assumed Kazzie over here would be so base, I do admit it is a little weird that this happened so suddenly."

"I'm telling you all the truth!" Sakai lied through his teeth, "He saw me taking off my bra and..sniff..sniff aaaa!"

Sakai continued to peddle the lie that I was some salacious pervert, as the others were debating on whether his words could be trusted or if I was indeed some sick weirdo who liked spying on girls changing, even though I knew he was a guy. The irony of knowing his secret ate me up inside, knowing that he was pulling the wool over everyone's eyes and that some of them were eating up his lies so easily.

"Is this true, Kazumi?" Wayne asked me innocently, unsure of what to believe, "I never thought you were that kind of person, should I even bother with the sweater?"

"N-No…" I started to freak out, mentally scared for my well being as the accusations and theories that I was a pervert were thrown around willy nilly, "I…."

My eyes welled up with tears, I was too terrified to fight back the accusations being hurled my way. I covered my ears and mumbled under my breath, wishing for it all to go away as I closed my eyes. I caught a glimpse of Sakai covering his face with his hands, a smile formed on his face as his eyes shrunk and his brow furrowed into a sadistic smile that made me panic.

"Is that really the case?" a female voice asked, sounding a bit more high pitched than Sakai's, "I love a good tale as much as anyone, but I can tell when a story gets cliche and boring."

"H-Huh?" I stopped shaking, hearing another unfamiliar voice and searched around for it.

I then turned to the side and saw someone appear out from the group, it was a girl that I'd never seen before. Her words took me by surprise as everyone collectively stopped talking to listen to what she had to say.

She was a short and rather petite girl. Her light brown hair was tied into low pigtails that reached down to her shoulders and rested against her back. Her eyes were a bright magenta color and she had a fair skin tone to her that had zero blemishes or marks. She was very demure and skinny, almost childlike in appearance and had a youthful glow to her look.

She wore a white collared shirt with a pink jacket over it with a hoodie over her head with cute panda ears that had dark pink hearts in the center of each ear. She had black and white striped sleeves that dangled down to her waist, a light grey skirt with black trimmed edges that ended near her knees. On her feet she wore pink socks with brown loafers and around her shoulder she had a small, black and white cute panda satchel bag.

"What do you mean by that?" one of the unfamiliar people asked, who was a guy, "I'm not really informed on all the details."

"Oh it's quite easy to see, after all it's my specialty to see through lies like this!" the panda hoodie girl hopped cheerfully, "I have a knack for telling when certain stories are interesting, or just plain bogus and hamfisted."

"What do you mean by bogus?" the second unfamiliar figure, a female asked as well heading over to me worriedly, "Are you saying that what Sakai is saying is untrue?"

"I mean it's a simple tale of he said, she said after all," the girl giggled, her eye twitching momentarily, "But I do so hate stories that are fake and full of lies, like the one our esteemed hair stylist is regaling us with!"

"Oh really?" Kimiya raised an eyebrow at the girl's hypothesis, "Well I will admit, this was all rather out of the blue and did surprise us."

"I agree," Torakusu interjected, staring at Sakai with contempt, "Even if she is cute, I cannot tolerate such ugly mistruths! Girls should never tell such bold lies without proof!"

"That does seem to be a reasonable assumption," Vivienne deduced, wheeling her chair closer to the action.

"Oh Vivienne! I knew you'd come around!" Torakusu bent down one one of his knees and held the trader's hand in a rather romantic fashion, "You are indeed a princess from a fairy tale!"

Viv seemed rather annoyed at this point by the sniper's over the top reactions, as she ignored him and by that note everyone else ignored him as well. The sniper took note of her disinterest as he pouted and sulked over to a corner of the room.

"Oh well, I guess the party pooper here wins," Sakai stopped crying, shrugging in defeat, "At least it was fun to see you all babble like chickens with their heads cut off!"

"So you were lying to us after all," Yumeji sleepily noted, having been resting her head on the bar countertop throughout entire argument, "That's a very underhanded move, but I don't really care."

"In any case, that was totally uncalled for, Sakai," Iena reproached him, sternly scolding him, "You better apologize for making everyone worry over nothing and especially to Kazumi for slander."

"I don't need to apologize to anyone, and especially that stick in the mud," Sakai snickered, "Besides, you're all so gullible, I might even try this again later, ta ta, everyone!"

With that, the hair stylist sauntered off and exited the room, giggling to himself along the way as everyone else calmed down after that intense debate. I was completely stiff with fear, unable to catch my breath as a few more drops of blood dripped down my nose and it seemed the commotion only made everything worse as my mental health dwindled further.

"Are you okay?" the panda eared girl asked me, staring at me with a curious look on her face, "You took such a sharp face dive there, I was tempted to add a cartoon sound effect to it."

"I um...I-I...t-thank y-you," I managed to catch my breath, my heart rate increasing ten fold after that scuffle as I managed to lean up against the bar counter and sit on one of the stools, "I'm f-fine...thank you f-for defending m-me.."

"No problem! So who are you? What's your talent? How old are you, mister?" the childlike girl asked, in a rapid fire manner, "Care to divulge any tales?"

"I uh...s-sorry, can you r-repeat that?" I asked her, my head spinning after she spat out those sentences.

"Oopsie, I'm sorry," she apologized, covering her mouth with her sleeves, "I forgot you hurt yourself, I'm sowwy~"

Her rather childish and enthusiastic remarks were very comical, but also sounded a bit insensitive in tone. I guess she was trying to get to know me or lighten the mood, but I just met her and she's already hitting me with twenty questions all at once. Between the overall chaos of the incident with Sakai and that, it was a little hard to process everything she said.

"It's f-fine...w-who are you?" I asked her politely, remembering I didn't get her name the first time.

"That's right, silly me!" she giggled cheerfully, clearing her throat and smiling brightly "My name is Lou Kiko! I'm known as the Ultimate Roleplayer. I hope we can get along!"

 **LOU KIKO - ULTIMATE ROLEPLAYER**

"H-Hello Lou...I'm K-Kazumi T-Toriyako…." I remarked with curiosity, "W-What does t-that m-mean? W-What's r-r-roleplaying entail?"

"Oh it's very simple really!" she jumped in place, almost like a hyperactive toddler, "It's basically the art of playing and acting like multiple different characters and being able to emulate them as closely as possible!"

"I-Is that s-so?" I anxiously noted, still bewildered by her talent, "So y-you're like an a-actor then?"

"I guess you can say that, sure!" she chuckled, tugging at her panda eared hoodie, "But are you really okay? That was a nasty fall you took there."

"I-I'm not e-even sure…I feel l-light headed…" I sleepily remarked to her, feeling a bit faint after the incident, "I might l-lie down l-later…"

"Well I hope you feel better soon, Kazzie!" she playfully chirped, patting me on the back, "See you later!"

I watched as the roleplayer skipped off to another group, skipping over to talk with Wayne. The two of them seemed to be having a fun time, as they both laughed and chuckled at whatever it was they were chatting about. The two of them had very similar personality traits, so it's no surprise they would hit it off so quickly.

"It seems your nose is still bleeding," an unfamiliar male figure interjected, "Here's a towel, this was the closest thing I could find, I hope it helps."

I turned away from Lou and noticed the guy who handed me the towel in question. From the way he sounded, it seemed he was as equally concerned, maybe even a bit more than the roleplayer was.

He had medium length silver hair that went down to the back of his neck that was slicked back on his head. He had fairly handsome facial features, with an oval chiseled face and straight nose. His narrow, light green eyes contrasted perfectly against his fairly tan skin as I noticed a few rough calluses on his hands. He had a light silver beard growing around his mouth and sideburns that weren't connected as his cheeks were cleanly shaved. He was taller than me; a bit taller than average and wasn't overly muscular but was fairly stocky with broad shoulders and well-built in muscle, probably from doing manual labor or something.

He wore a white button down shirt with an olive green bomber jacket over it with black trousers on his legs. There was a black belt with a silver buckle tied around his waist and he wore black leather shoes on his feet, meshing between a somewhat casual and professional look. To finish off his business casual look he wore a silver watch with a black face and silver lettering on his right wrist.

"T-Thank you…" I nodded my head, thanking him for the towel as I started to clog my nose.

"You're welcome, it's the least I could do," he politely stated, making a slight smile on his face, "I just wish there was more I could do to help."

"I-It's fine...you d-don't need to d-do that.." I reassured him, assuaging his fear that he wasn't being helpful enough.

"Alright then, if you need anything else, please feel free to ask," he calmly said, sounding even more controlled in tone.

"R-Really there's n-no need to be s-so f-formal about it…" I shook my head, keeping the towel inside my bleeding nostril, "P-Pardon me for a-asking...but w-who are you?"

The silver haired guy didn't seem at all taken aback by my sudden question, he remained rather calm, but had that very mellow look to him that made him somewhat easy to talk to. I didn't feel at all uncomfortable when I asked him that direct question.

"Oh right! I almost forgot," he calmed down, adjusting his bomber jacket and fixing his white shirt, "It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Yoshikazu Aomori, Ultimate Auctioneer. I'll be around, so if you ever need anything, let me know and I'll see what I can do to help."

 **YOSHIKAZU AOMORI - ULTIMATE AUCTIONEER**

After hearing his words, I didn't feel as frightened when talking to him. Maybe it's the ruggedly handsome looks or his very suave sounding voice, but Yoshikazu just felt like someone I could talk to without stumbling over for words. I never expected him to be an auctioneer, but I'm not really someone who can be judging people's career choices. If anything him being an auctioneer seemed fitting, given his charismatic attitude and polite toned deep voice.

"S-So you w-work selling art?" I asked him, unsure if that's what he specialized in, "Or d-do you s-sell other things?"

"Well, that's a very loaded question," he mused over it, fixing his wrist watch, "But I say that I auction off a little bit of everything, it's not really relegated to one specific type of auction. I have a more versatile work schedule that deals with other priceless artifacts, if that's what you mean?"

"O-Oh..that's c-cool…" I said in awe, a bit impressed by his work resume, "S-Sounds like f-fun.."

"I suppose you can call it that," he chuckled, "It's a living and I take pride in doing my job to the best of my ability."

His words were confident, but he didn't seem the type to rub it in your face. His words felt genuine and from the way he described his profession, it's almost as if he were a natural born auctioneer. He kind of reminded me of those car salesmen who would sell you cars and chat your ear off with his very persuasive yet hypnotic words. He kind of reminded me of the kind of person that you couldn't say no to, no matter how hard you tried, which I guess was kind of an asset if that made sense.

"You look like you need this," said an unfamiliar female voice, that came from behind me, "Here you go, on the house!"

I turned around and noticed someone standing behind the bar and handing me a glass of water. It was a girl and she was busy wiping a glass with a clean white rag from underneath the bar.

Her silvery purple long hair was tied up into a messy top knot bun atop her head with a few messy strands coming out of it, with a straight cut fringe over her forehead. Her oval shaped dark violet eyes were defined by her long eyelashes highlighted with some black mascara and made her eyes pop. There was a small beauty spot near the corner of her left eye and her she had a rather clear complexion and pale skin tone. She had average facial features, with the exception of her ears which were slightly pointed in an elfin like way with both ears pierced twice on each side, in each ear she wore a diamond stud and a tiny gold hoop as well. She was an average build and was on the slimmer side if anything.

She wore a white long sleeved button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up and the top four buttons undone, with a mint green vest top underneath, paired with black boot cut jeans held up by a gold belt and black trainers. To complete her simple look, she wore a simple gold necklace with a love heart pendant around her neck; half of the pendant was made of garnet and the other half made from ruby which made me mistake both gems for the same color until I looked a bit closer. She looked like a bartender judging from how she dressed, given her rather simple yet fashionably comfortable attire.

"T-Thank you.." I took the glass of water, inspected it briefly before drinking it and taking a few sips, "V-Very refreshing...I n-needed that...you d-didn't have to d-do that miss.."

"No problem, after that fall, you look like you could use a sasparilla," she said in a rather tired, yet mature tone of voice, "I think we all need a drink after dealing with that noise, would you like some too, Yoshikazu?"

"No need, but thank you for the offer, Stella," the auctioneer refused the girl's service, referring to her as 'Stella'.

"S-Stella?" I questioned, wondering why he called her by that name.

"That's my name," she stated, finishing wiping the glass and putting it back underneath the bar countertop, "I'm Stella Belvedere, Ultimate Pub Manager, it's good to meet you, Kazumi was it?"

 **STELLA BELVEDERE - ULTIMATE PUB MANAGER**

"Y-Yeah...K-Kazumi T-T-Toriyako...n-nice to meet you, S-Stella," I nodded to her, anxiously greeting her, "I uh...d-don't know what m-my talent is…"

"Really?" Stella inquired, resting her hands on the countertop, "Well hey, I'm not here to judge, Ultimate or not, if you need anything, I'm here to help, Kazumi."

"I a-appreciate it…" I thanked her, a bit curious as to what her talent was, "A-Are you like a b-bartender or something?"

"Oh I run a pub, it's kind of like a bar and a restaurant mixed into one I suppose," she was arranging a glass of water for herself as she told me that, "My family owns a pub in England and I work there part time or whenever I have free time."

"Y-You're f-from E-England? W-Wow...t-there are so m-many foreigners h-here…" I held my glass of water in my hand and swished around the glass, "It's i-interesting.."

"W-What do you mean by that, Kazumi?" Yoshikazu asked, sitting down next to at the bar, scratching at his beard casually.

"Oh its n-nothing, Y-Yoshikazu…" I nervously responded, "J-Just mumbling to m-myself.."

"Please call me Yoshi or Kazu, I prefer Kazu, but either one is fine," he smiled back at me, listening to me talk, as Stella poured some water into a cup for the auctioneer, despite refusing her offer the first time.

"Alright K-Kazu…" I nodded my head, sipping more of my water, soon realizing that I was looking for this exact thing to wash down the pain.

I searched through my owl backpack and found the orange bottle of headache medicine Sato and Ushio gave me. I turned the cap and took one of the white tablets, chucking it into my mouth as I sipped my water quickly, gulping it down hurriedly.

"Are you alright, Kazumi?" Stella asked, sipping on a glass of water she poured for herself, "You sick or something?"

"Oh I h-h-have a bit of a-a h-headache is all...n-nothing to b-be worried about.." I reassured her, sealing the bottle and tossing it back into my bag, "These are j-just headache t-tablets.."

"I see," Yoshikazu noted, sipping his glass of water as he gulped down his water, "Make sure you're not taking too much at once, alright."

"Y-Yeah…" I nodded weakly at the auctioneer, "T-Thanks K-Kazu.."

From talking with the both of them, it felt as if I was getting interrogated by my parents or something with how worried they both seemed for my well being. I'm a complete stranger to them, yet they're concerned about someone like me of all people. It felt weird, but at the same time, it was also pleasant and comforting to know that some of the people in here weren't as hostile as some others. I guess there are good people trapped in here as well, which only made me question why they're here as well.

Talking with the people I've met so far, I'd completely forgotten that my original objective was to escape from this place. I guess the overall safety of this aquarium made me somewhat fear what lied on the other side of this oceanic pseudo paradise and enticed me to stay longer. I wasn't sure how to explain what I was feeling, but it was mystifying to say the least.

"T-Thank you for the d-drink, Stella," I thanked the pub manager, resting the empty glass on the countertop, "See y-you later, K-Kazu.."

"Anytime, Kazumi," she smiled calmly, yawning into her hand, "Catch you later."

"I wish you well and hope you feel better soon, Kazumi," the auctioneer waved to me, as he finished his drink as well.

I then proceeded towards one of the double door exits and noticed Yoshikazu and Stella talking with each other casually and the others were also getting acquainted with each other as well. Kimiya sat by himself, trying to take a quick nap as Lou and Wayne both surprised him, which was to say that he didn't take to kindly to being rudely awakened by the knitter and roleplayer. He jumped in his seat like a cat hearing a loud noise as the the two laughed at him gleefully.

I spotted a few more people entering into the dining room, Sato, Ushio, Takara and Moriko. Yumeji was busy sleeping on one of the open tables, blissfully unaware of what was around her. Sato joined in talking with Stella and Yoshikazu as Ushio stood near a wall and didn't fraternize with anyone else.

Lev was busy analyzing Takara and Moriko's choice of clothing; as the doll maker and the sailor both started talking with each other rather loudly, Takara amused by Moriko's very playful and scatterbrained demeanor. I spotted Aphrodite fixing her hair as she was being hit on by Torakusu, trying to flirt with the other girls while Vivienne and Dragomir watched from afar. The sniper pulled out a bouquet of flowers from nowhere and offered it to the pageant queen as she spurned his gift, turning her nose up at him. The sniper dejectedly sulked back to another corner of the room as he dropped the bouquet of flowers from being rejected and the petals scattered around the floor. The trader giggled at his failed attempt at being romantic, while the zoologist patted him on the back.

Lastly I saw Iena trying to wake up Yumeji, as Vivienne wheeled her wheelchair over to the judge and oneirologist. The trader seemed rather amused by her attempts to wake her up, as Yumeji was nudged around by Iena like a puppy rubbing it's' head against its owner's leg. I didn't bother checking to see if Sakai was still lurking around and didn't even hesitate leaving the dining room thinking that he was still inside.

"W-What j-just h-happened?" I mentally asked myself, feeling a lot of emotions all at once, "I n-need to c-clear my head and f-find s-someplace q-quiet...t-too much n-noise.."

Despite heading through another exit, the hallway pretty much resembled the other hallways, a long winding path with a kaleidoscopic view of the glistening ocean above. It's a wonder how such a beautiful sight, made me feel so nauseous at the same time, maybe that's the medication talking or the mental trauma from such a wild rollercoaster of an event that was.

I walked down the hallway, hoping to find something else noteworthy and came across a different door labelled 'Library' in bright green neon letters. I noticed that it was the only room present in this hallway and there were no other doors in sight.

"F-Finally a q-quiet place…" I anxiously mumbled, twisting the door handle and entering the room.

As I entered the 'Library', what I was greeted with was exactly what I expected it to be, but from decor alone it was almost astonishingly different, in terms of both size and length.

The room itself was ten times larger than I imagined it would be; not as tall as the dining room, but almost rivalling it in height and outlasting it in terms of length. The floor was a soft mossy green flat surface that felt scratchy and rough to the touch. The walls of the library were painted a pale blue color with purple squiggly lines that looked like purple snakes and white and blue whales swimming on the design of the wallpaper. The ceiling was like the other rooms and hallways in this facility, with a clear view of the ocean above, but a brighter light shone and lit up the library, probably meaning we were somewhere close to the surface.

There were fish shaped desk lamps resting in the center of about ten different mahogany carved wooden tables; with about five chairs to each table. There were humongous sized wooden bookshelves that seemed to touch the ceiling with how high they reached; competing with the height of small mountains. From looking at one bookshelf, it seemed that there were about ten rows of books to each shelf and from initial perusal, there were many different genres of books such business, mystery, romance, YA fiction, comedy, historical and even non-fiction.

Not only was there a library present, but there appeared to be two different rooms that were sequestered off at either ends of the library. One of the rooms was marked 'Computer Lab' that had a wooden door with a picture of cartoonish computer symbols on the front on the left side and on the right side there was a door with a sign that read 'Cafe' with a door that had the picture of a coffee cup on the front window.

To finish off the library's rather professional design, there was even a help desk where a librarian would work, but no one present. Instead, there was a stack of cards labelled 'Library Cards' with a bunch of random office supplies such as notebooks, pens, loose leaf paper, sharpened pencils, erasers, markers and other assorted items laying inside of plastic containers with white tape labels written in black ink.

"T-This place is...w-wow...so b-big…" I stood in awe at the sight of it all, a bit curious as to what books there were inside this mountainous room.

"Hello there, I've not seen you before!" an optimistic sounding voice greeted me.

I turned to face who it was greeting me and came face to face with another person, sitting on a table reading a book. The person was a guy, as he happily sauntered over to me to meet me.

He had short black hair that was in the style of a crew cut look and his eyes were a light brown color. His skin was light brown with a few freckles on his cheeks. He was tall, maybe a few inches taller than I was, maybe around average height for a guy. He had a slightly muscled frame, but it wasn't apparent or that noticeable on first glance.

He wore very simple attire that consisted of an aqua green turtleneck sweater that fit snugly around his body. On his legs he wore black jeans with brown boots on his feet. Not much else to his outfit, other than it was rather plain looking.

"Oh um..h-hello there…" I nervously greeted him, a bit surprised by his suddenly loud greeting.

"It's nice to meet another person, there are so many wonderful people in here!" he smiled from ear to ear, "Name's Terrence Hill, Ultimate Communicator, at your service!"

 **TERRENCE HILL - ULTIMATE COMMUNICATOR**

Well he seems nice, a bit energetic, but he doesn't give me weird vibes. I guess compared to everyone else, Terrence didn't seem like the type to do anything outrageous or crazy. Then again, it's hard to tell, given that I just met him, so who knows.

"H-Hi T-Terrence...I'm K-Kazumi Toriyako...n-nice to m-meet you," I anxiously responded to him, hugging my teddy bear loosely.

"It's indeed a pleasure to meet you!" he cheerfully remarked, "Are you also an Ultimate too? What's your talent?"

"I u-uh...about t-that…" I hesitated, watching as the communicator watched me with patient eyes, "I d-don't know…"

"Oh is that so?" he stopped smiling for a moment and thought about it, "Well that's perfectly alright! I'm sure you'll remember it no time at all!"

He then patted me on the back, trying his best to cheer me up I suppose. I mean he seems like a friendly guy, but appearances can be deceiving. He doesn't seem at all suspicious to me so far, but I should really focus on getting out of here first.

"I'm g-going to g-go find a q-quiet place t-to read...later T-Terrence.." I slowly inched away from him, feeling my headache getting worse and worse.

"Later Kaz, hope you have a good rest of your day!" he smiled, giving me a heart wave as he put back the book he was reading and left the library.

I watched the communicator make a mad dash for the door as I stood there, wondering where to even begin with this library. Another question that ran through my mind, who was this facility for? I mean Aside from the people I've met so far, was this place always abandoned? Or are there people secretly working behind the scenes? It might explain the strange circumstances of waking up here with no memory of who I am or why I'm trapped in this place with these random people I've never met before.

I think out of all those questions, my biggest concern was where are these people and why did they do all of this to begin with? Just thinking about that seemed to agitate my headache even more, as if I shouldn't be thinking that and should just rest instead.

"M-Might as well d-do some d-digging…" I pondered, perusing the plethora of books at my disposal.

I made my way down the long hallway of bookshelves, noting that there were about maybe fifteen or twenty tall bookshelves inside with about ten shelves of books to each one. I also noticed there was a large rail ladder that was used to reach the higher shelves as well as a metal stick used to grab books that were out of reach resting inside of a side compartment next to the railing.

"S-So many s-sections to c-choose from…" I pondered, gawking at the grandiose amount of books presented, "W-Where to s-start?"

As I continued walking along the aisles, I passed by a few genre sections, not seeing anything that might help me find out where I was, or if there was a secret exit out of this place hiding behind a large amount of books.

"I have a s-strange feeling that s-someone is w-watching me…" I mumbled, feeling the hairs on my back stand straight as a shiver spider walked down my spine.

I brushed off the feeling initially, continuing my search for answers as I came to the end of the library, noting that the last section was titled '?'. I'd never expected a library to have something like this, nor did I ever see a section that didn't have a proper title marked down, how mysterious. I took a deep gulp, walked down the aisle and noticed that all the books inside this section were all the same; black bound books with mysterious white titles that were so cryptic, it was hard to tell which book was the one I needed. I searched each shelf, reading the titles of each book carefully, but none of them caught my interest.

"Mmm…" a faint voice muttered, coming somewhere closeby.

"W-Who's there!?" I nervously asked loudly, shaking in my shoes.

I shivered in place, afraid of who was lurking around as I sweated anxiously. I turned my head to the left and saw nothing and freaked out even more, knowing that whoever was watching me was watching from afar. I then turned to my right and saw a faint shadow of someone hiding behind one of the narrow bookshelves.

"I-Is someone t-there?" I asked nervously, inching away slowly from that side of the library.

"Hello," an unfamiliar voice spoke behind me, "I'm right here."

"Ack!" I jumped, tripping over my footing in the process.

I hit the back of my head against one of the shelves, a few of the books falling over in the process as I dropped the teddy bear and my backpack fell off of my shoulders. I guess I'd accomplished the record for being the clumsiest person ever, given the amount of times I'd causing trouble or hurting myself in the process.

"O-Oww…" I winced in pain, rubbing the back of my head, "W-Why does t-this keep h-happening?"

"Are you alright?" the same calm voice asked me, "Do you need me to get you an ice pack?"

"O-Oh.." I looked up and was greeted by a hand and another person, another girl.

She loomed over me, as it seemed she was also a few inches taller than me and had an average build with a flat chest as well. Her shaggy blonde long hair rested comfortably against her tan skin as he baby blue eyes stared at me stoically. Her hands were calloused and had bits of brown and black dirt caked into the palm of her hand as well as a few bits lodged into her fingernails.

She wore a black fur hooded coat, with a grey tank top underneath and both seemed to be smudged with dirt stains like on her hands. She had her sleeves pushed back a bit, as it seemed that even her sleeves went past her hands. She wore grey cargo pants with lots of pockets filled with stuff inside them as well as black hiking boots on her feet. However what took me by surprise was that she was wearing something over her mouth, a black face mask that covered her mouth but was below her nose that had a small silver zipper over the mouth area.

"Do you need help?" she asked, still keeping her hand extended.

"Huh..o-oh y-yeah!" I shook my head, taking her hand in mine as I felt a bit of dirt smear itself on the palm of my hand, "I don't n-need an ice pack.."

"Alright, if you say so," she passively said, not much emotion in her voice.

"T-Thank you, m-miss.." I nervously thanked her, wiping the dirt on my pants, "Y-You a-almost gave me a h-heart attack t-there….haha…"

"I see, that wasn't my intention at all, but I'm glad that you're alright," she bluntly said, not much emotion in her tone of voice, "We should probably clean this mess up."

"M-Mess? O-Oh right!" I paused momentarily, before noticing the books and my possession littered on the carpet, "M-My bad…"

"It's fine, it's my fault for surprising you," the girl bent down, picking up the books one by one and placing them back on the shelf, "I'm sorry for giving you a fright."

"N-No seriously, t-there's no n-need to apologize," I told her, grabbing a few books and placing them on the shelf as well, "Y-You didn't m-mean any harm b-b-by it.."

The masked girl and I finished reorganizing the books, dusting off our hands as I picked up my stuff and hugged the teddy bear in my arms. The girl didn't seem at all phased, in fact she was rather calm and didn't seem at all intimidating despite the dark clothing and face mask.

She stared at me for a brief moment, the awkward silence travelled through the room as we didn't know what to say next to each other. I guess icebreakers weren't our forte, but I decided that I was going to be the one to introduce myself first, it might help alleviate the silence.

"U-Umm.." we both said in unison, noticing we talked at the same time.

I blushed in embarrassment, nervously shaking as she did the same, however due to her face mask it was hard to tell if she was blushing as well or was just wearing faint makeup.

"I-I'll go f-first.." I anxiously spoke, my mouth quivering in fear, "My n-name is Kazumi T-T-Toriyako...it's n-nice to meet you, m-miss…I uh...d-don't know my t-talent.."

"Likewise Kazumi," she nodded her head, "I'm Nomi Hitomi, Ultimate Gardener, how do you do."

 **NOMI HITOMI - ULTIMATE GARDENER**

Well, it made a bit of sense why her hands were dirty, but what was she doing before encountering me? Did she watch me the entire time or something or is it just only when I entered the library did she take notice?

"Is there a problem, Kazumi?" she asked, looking at me with a blank stare.

"N-No n-nothing of the sort N-Nomi…" I nervously responded, assuaging her curiosity, "I'm j-just a little d-dazed is all...it's b-been a long d-day.."

"Ah, that makes sense," she noted, tugging at her coat sleeves, "Well, I'll leave you to it…"

With that, the gardener left me immediately, exiting the conversation just like that. I guess she really didn't like making small talk, which is apparently something that both of us didn't really seem good at. Then again, why am I procrastinating? I should be looking for an exit, not chatting with complete strangers.

As I made my way out of the mysterious book aisle, I took note of something small flash directly below me. I looked down to where the books fell and noticed something small, maybe two inches long on the floor. It rested at the base of the bookshelf as I picked it up and observed it closely. It was a small grey flash drive with a piece of paper attached to the back of it.

"W-What's t-this?" I wondered, pocketing the drive and reading the note.

On the small piece of paper, it only had one word on the front side in blue ink letters.

"A-Astatine?" I titled my head in confusion, turning to see the backside and noticing more words on the backside, "No n-not the e-element….p-plug it i-into a d-device and y-you'll s-see what I m-mean…"

I read the words out loud, trying to make some sense of it and was even more puzzled. I guess it must have fallen out of one of the books on the shelf. My initial thought was to leave it on the shelf, but curiosity got the better of me as I remembered there was a computer lab inside the library.

"L-Let's h-hope it d-doesn't blow up…" I sweated, walking out nervously.

I left the unusually claustrophobic and narrow book aisle and made my way back to the main area where the computer lab was. I noticed the door on the left, taking note of the cartoonish computer decal on the door, twisting the door handle and entering inside. I felt the wall for a light switch and the lights turned on instantly revealing the layout of the room. The computer room, unlike the rest of the aquatic facility, looked like any other computer room you'd see in a high school classroom.

The floors were tiled a dark grey color and didn't stand out as much as the other rooms' carpeted aesthetic. The walls were a plain beige color with a few minute black outline fish decal plastered on the blank walls. There were about twenty computers; five computers to about four rows with each computer indicated by a color of the rainbow and a name stamp next to the top the of each computer monitor. The chairs were black cushioned leather seating with arm and back rests and they appeared to be swivel chairs at that. Each computer had a bunch of hard drives, plug outlets, wires, cords and other necessary equipment stored underneath each computer station and there were rainbow transition keyboards to each one with a plain black mouse resting on the side underneath starfish shaped mouse pads. I also took note of a few rolling crates, with a bunch of laptops stored inside and charging in the back left corner of the room, I guess they were used in case the computers were out of commission.

"A-At least t-this room is q-quiet…" I thought, walking down each computer aisle.

I then took note of one computer near the front row, close to the door side of the room, was turned on and resting on the home page. There didn't seem to be any programs or apps running on the computer as the hard drive whirred and the keyboard glittered rainbow colors along each keypad letter.

"H-How c-convenient…" I curiously noted, taking a seat in the available seat and resting my things on the side, "L-Let's see w-what all the f-fuss is about…"

I pulled the flash drive out of my pocket, inserted it into one of the hard drive's outlets and waited a few seconds for something to pop up on screen. I then took the mouse, clicked on an app that said folder and found that it was empty, bar one item.

"I-Is this the f-file?" I moved the mouse along and clicked on the unknown file marked 'Astatine' and double clicked it.

I waited for a few moments again, before seeing an icon white pop up text on screen. I eyed the messaged on the brightly lit screen and read the message.

"Would you l-like to d-download to t-t-this computer?" it asked me, with a yes or no button prompt present underneath the text.

"M-Might as well.." I then clicked 'Yes', waiting for something to happen.

After a while, I saw another pop appear on screen with a green loading bar showing me the download process. It went from twenty five percent, to fifty percent, to seventy five percent and then jumped to one hundred percent as the computer momentarily glitched out. I waited patiently for something to happen, sighing with disappointment before something popped up on screen.

"D-Did it w-work?" I wondered, clicking on the app that appeared on screen.

Almost immediately, a few lines appeared on screen and then a white chat room window opened up with the lines above it. It reminded me of those online server rooms where you'd chat with people over the internet, wait for a response and then they'd answer back. I watched as the lines on screen formed into a weird emoticon like face.

This image was presented on the chat room window '_'.

I watched as the lines formed the face, the dotted eyes of the emoticon looked around the room. I guess it was some kind of artificial intelligence program in that case. After perusing its environment, the emoticon then turned to face me, assessing the situation for a brief moment and the chat room window popped up.

"T-This is w-weird...but c-cool..how do I interact w-with it?" I wondered, then seeing a text box appear underneath the chat window, meaning I had to chat with the AI, "Let's j-just keep it s-simple.."

I then typed on the keyboard 'Hello, what are you?', anxiously awaiting a response. The emoticon then processed what I had typed and then its line mouth moved, almost like one of those AI you'd see in sci-fi movies or cartoons.

"Hello, thank you for installing me," it said, with a robotic tone, but sounded female, "My name is Astatine. I'm the Ultimate Ethical Hacker."

 **ASTATINE - ULTIMATE ETHICAL HACKER**

I was a bit taken aback by its voice and the fact it actually talked back. Although I was slightly anxious of what this AI was, I wanted to know more about it and wondered if it could help me find a way out.

"Nice to meet you Astatine, my name is Kazumi Toriyako," I typed into the text box, "What do you mean Ethical Hacker? What are you exactly?"

After typing that message and sending it, I waited a few minutes as the program began processing my lengthy response.

"It's nice to meet you as well, Kazumi Toriyako," it spoke again, not a hint of emotion in its voice, "Although I am an AI, which would technically make me the Ultimate Ethical Hacking Program, it seems my creator didn't focus on the exact specifics of my coding."

"So it s-seems it u-understands me…" I mused over my next response, thinking intimately about it, "Might a-as well ask it s-straight.."

With a bit of minute faith, I typed out the next message. I asked Astatine where we were and if there were any ways out of the facility.

"It appears that we are approximately fifteen hundred metres underneath the ocean," the program stated, processing the rest of what I typed out, "Currently from what I can gather, there are not any exits present, however that is as far as I am allowed to scan due to an unknown firewall limiting my search."

Well so much for finding a way out. I face planted on the desk, feeling defeated at the fact that even a computer AI was stumped on finding a way out of this mysterious facility. I guess expecting to find one so early on was a leap of faith judgement call, but at least I tried. The part about the firewall did pique my interest, it must mean that whoever set it up, and by extension whoever kidnapped me and the others, must have accounted for someone finding this program and asking it that question. The amount of foresight that this shadowy figure had, made me quiver in my seat. It was a frightening notion to hear that whoever kept us in this place, also accounted for that fact as well as hiding the true layout of this entire aquarium.

"Is there an issue with my findings, Kazumi?" the ethical hacker asked me, staring at me with its blank emoticon face.

Forgetting that I was chatting with the AI for a split second, I collected my thoughts, typed out a message that reassured the program and thanked it for the information.

"I appreciate this information, Astatine," I typed calmly, "However I need to go, I'll talk to you later."

After a few seconds, the program responded with a farewell styled response.

"I hope you find what you are looking for, thank you for being my first acquaintance, Kazumi," the program spoke, a small smile forming on its face.

As the chat window disappeared, Astatine shut itself off and the computer monitor turned off. I took the flash drive out of the hard drive and put it back into my pocket, hoping to at least salvage more information later on down the line. I exited the computer room and re-entered the library, noticing that it was dead quiet as most libraries usually are.

The aquatic view above provided mute sounds of ocean waves and fish swimming by, instilling a tranquil aura that soothed my headache and provided brief relief. With all hope of escaping, down the drain like a pipe dream, I noticed the cafe and saw the door open ajar, meaning someone was inside.

"P-Please don't be d-dangerous…" I hoped, gulping nervously and heading over to the door.

I made my way over to the door, pushed it open and went inside of the cafe. As I entered inside, I found more than just a regular cafe, but it looked like a mini bakery.

There were five different coffee dispensers near the back of the room, as well as a water cooler in the center for cold water and a few styrofoam cups resting next to the dispensers. There were a wide table with a bunch of straws, cremes, sugars, stirrers and even napkins resting on top of the countertop. A little compartment hole where trash could be thrown away with a cupboard underneath with a few black trash bags underneath. There were a few glass displays with numerous baked goods on each shelf; two large glass shelves with about five rows each with a different selection of pastries to eat such as meat pies, croissants, doughnuts, cookies, cupcakes, muffins, eclairs, cream puffs, cream horns, apple fritters, pigs in a blanket and much more to choose from.

For furniture, there were about three circle coffee tables with two raised stools next to each one. The carpet was a brown muddy color and the wallpaper was a chocolate brown and light caramel wave pattern. To finish off the cafe like decor, there were a few potted plants resting in each corner of the room as well as the token aquatic view from above.

"W-Wow...t-this room...is w-wow.." I stood in awe, sniffing the delicious pastries, "Mmm...s-smells good.."

"Are you honestly that easily impressed," scoffed an unfamiliar voice, "What a moron."

Shocked by the sudden voice, I looked to the side and saw someone sitting in one of the seats. The person, a guy, was watching me awkwardly stare dumbly at the room, with a red lollipop in his mouth.

He had short dark black hair that was slicked back and reached the back of his neck . He had a diamond shaped face with a pointed chin, curved nose, small ears, a well defined jawline and was quite attractive for a guy. His skin was pale white, almost like a vampire's skin tone. He had a strong athletic looking build and his clothes did nothing to hide his well defined muscles and he didn't appear to have any facial hair of any kind. His small round eyes were what caught my attention the most, with his left eye being green and the right one a bright blue, which meant he had heterochromia if that was the correct term for his condition.

He wore a dark red dress shirt which was covered by a black waistcoat that were both buttoned up, with the exception of the shirt with the top button left undone. He wore suit like black trousers which were kept up by a black belt with a gold buckle in the middle of the belt with a gold comb in his back trouser pocket and he wore black office shoes on his feet. Upon closer inspection, he wore gold dice earrings in both ears; the left side had a gold coin with a skill design on the base and the right side had an angel on it.

But what took me by surprise was that on the back of each of his hands, he had tattoos on each one. On his left hand he had a tattoo of a pair of dice with smoke coming out of them and on his right hand was a skull with a cigar in its mouth.

The strange man's look reminded me of one of those old style gangsters you'd see from any crime drama film. He also somewhat dressed like a bartender but had that kind of suave and bad boy look to him that made me weary around his presence.

"E-Excuse m-me?" I asked, a bit offended by his off handed comment, "W-Who are y-you?"

"If you'd stop stuttering like a blithering idiot, then I'd be happy to oblige," he said, licking his lollipop in a carefree manner, "Otherwise it'd be a waste of my time."

"U-Um…" I was at a loss for words, mumbling under my breath and too nervous for words, "I uh…"

"I don't have all day, loser," he scoffed, glaring at me with a disappointed scowl, "Speak up!"

Anxious and afraid, I mustered up all the courage I could and confronted him head on. He might be intimidating to talk to, but I at least need to introduce myself properly or else it was going to go nowhere.

"I'M K-KAZUMI T-TORIYAKO!" I unintentionally shouted, "It's n-nice to meet you…"

I huffed in exhaustion, my face turning red with frustration as the guy chuckled at my hyperventilated state. It seemed he was taking joy in watching me squirm as he sucked on his lollipop.

"See, now that wasn't so hard now was it," he teased, smiling rather cockily, "Akio Ito, Ultimate Gambler, a pleasure to meet you."

 **AKIO ITO - ULTIMATE GAMBLER**

A gambler? So he's like a professional card player or something similar? I guess that's a unique talent, but don't you have to be an adult to play games like poker and cards? I guess he must be really lucky if he's able to earn a title like that, however I didn't think his look really matched that of a gambler, even if he was dressed rather sharply. I guess it's the tattoos on the back of his hands that are giving me the wrong impression or something.

"From that stupid look on your face, you're trying to figure me out," he smugly chuckled, smiling rather smugly, "Don't even bother rubbing your brain cells together, kid."

"H-Huh? I'm n-not sure w-what you mean?" I tilted my head in confusion, hugging my teddy bear, "I'm n-not trying to f-figure you o-out.."

"Don't play dumb with me, smartass," his tone of voice got a bit more serious and more aggressive in tone, "I can't stand your stuttering, whining and fussing, it's absolutely grating to my ears and I wish you would shut up already."

"I-I'm s-sorry, I didn't m-mean to o-offend you, A-Akio.." I instinctively apologized, when it should have been the other way around given his confrontational behavior.

"Whatever, you ruined my alone time with your pathetic sad, naive act," he clicked his tongue, standing up and fixing his waist coat, "Just when I was getting used to this spot too, idiocy spreads faster than I imagined."

"I'm s-sorry..I don't r-really understand w-what's going on…" I anxiously asked, feeling the sweat trickle down my forehead.

What was with his attitude, and here I thought things couldn't get any worse than Sakai, guess I was wrong. I just met this guy and he's been nothing but venomous and antagonistic to me as soon as I walked through the door. I didn't even know why I was apologizing to him in the first place, but I was too afraid to reproach him or fight back his words, almost as if his confident aura dissuaded me from speaking up.

"No matter, you can always make it up to me later," he smiled devilishly, "But for now, I'll leave you be and let this slide."

The gambler brushed past me as he headed for the door, putting his hands into his pockets and walking out as if he owned the place.

"H-Huh? W-What do you m-mean?" I wondered, a bit fearful of what he meant by making it up to him.

"Figure it out on your own, I can't answer all your dumb questions," he snickered, crunching his lollipop loudly, "Bye for now."

As he left me inside of the cafe, I felt both insulted as well as confused. I just met him and he's already left me with a bad first impression, yet somehow he had a very alluring but confident charm to him, that made me even more curious as to why he treated me so poorly. I didn't understand why he was so mean to me, but I was too hungry and upset to question his motives and I didn't feel like trying my luck with him.

"So...h-hungry…" I muttered, feeling my stomach growl loudly, "N-Need food.."

Forgetting my basic etiquette, I lunged my body towards the food displays, opened up one of the doors and immediately shoved a meat pie into my mouth. The crisp, warm and tender meat inside of the gooey and moist dough filled me to the brim with a delightful sensation as I bit into it wolfishly. I was like a wild animal in the forest searching for prey, devoid of clear thinking, I pounced on a doughnut and began scarfing down more food until after five pieces of pastry I felt full.

"S-So...t-tasty…" I licked my lips, burping in the process, "Arp! E-Excuse me…"

Even though the food filled me up, I felt thirstier than before, remembering that there were coffee dispensers available to us as well. I walked over and grabbed a small cup and looked at each dispenser closely, noting five flavors of coffee. There were 'Black', 'French Vanilla', 'Mocha', 'Caramel Cream' and 'Hot Chocolate', I also saw a red lever and pulled down on the one that said hot chocolate.

The brown liquid dripped into the styrofoam cup delicately, splatters of hot chocolate entered the cup and almost filled it to the brim as white steam poured out of it and wafted throughout the room. My sense of smell was allured by the sweet scent of the cocoa as I went to take a sip, forgetting that it was still hot as I burned my tongue.

"Aah!" I yelped in pain, dropping the cup and spilling it on the floor, "Oh m-man.."

The cocoa spilled on the floor and splattered everywhere, resulting in a puddle of liquid that splashed against my pants and stained the carpet. Out of fear, I grabbed some napkins from nearby and began pressing it against the carpet, hoping to clean up the mess. The brown stains seemed to spread around a lot, but given that the carpet itself was brown and that the smell of coffee lingered inside the cafe, that I would be able to get away with it.

"Ahem ahem!" a sudden voice appeared, clearing its throat, "Attention all students!"

I jumped, dropping the soiled napkins and turned around in horror, searching for where the mysterious voice was coming from. I then looked up and took note of a tv monitor located inside the cafe that displayed an image on the screen. The figure was blacked out and was shadowed in darkness, with the only thing that made it stand out was its rotund and curved outline.

"Please report to the dining room immediately for a quick orientation," the high pitched cartoonish voice announced, "Chop chop people, don't want to be late on your first day!"

The image on the screen disappeared, leaving the room with an awkward silence that made me nervous and fearful of who was talking over the intercom.

"Is t-that the o-one who k-kidnapped me?" I wondered, feeling a shiver trail down my spine as I dropped what I was doing and headed out of the cafe.

I threw away the dirty napkins into the trash, left the cafe frantically, the sickly sweet scent of hot chocolate diffused throughout the cafe as I nervously headed out. I closed the door and made my way out of the library, entering the main hallway and walking in the direction of the dining room.

I felt ten times as cautious as well as frightened. I had no clue who was overseeing this entire operation nor did I get any answers on where I was. The thought of escaping slipped my mind as I decided that it was best to humor whoever it was that brought us here. I quaked in my shoes, taking small deep breaths as I made my way to the dining room doors, all while thinking just one single thought.

Was I kidnapped for some kind of twisted plan?

* * *

 **A/N** : Hello hello hello lovely people and welcome back to another chapter of SWBC. I hope this extra long intro chapter suffices and it's so nice to see you all again after a long while.

Honestly, writing this last intro chapter for this story was tough, but I was able to pull through in the end, writing at least multiple intros in one sitting and skipping meals at times XD I'm such a rebel. I'm perfectly fine now, just been busy with IRL life and feeling unmotivated to write for a while.

I was under the weather recently and was bedridden for a few days, but I'm back on my feet now and I wanted to get this next chapter out as soon as I could. To the people who's OC have been introduced in this chapter, I hope I did a good job at portraying them, it wasn't easy considering there were so many noteworthy and fun interactions with each OC. I hope you all liked my interpretation of your OC and if there are any issues with how I portrayed them, please let me know ASAP.

Enough about me, what did you guys think of this chapter as a whole, was it mysterious and foreboding XD look at me trying to be funny. I had fun making this chapter, despite the obstacles in my way in getting this out on time, it was hectic these past few weeks and I thank you all for sticking with me through this story's progression.

Again, thank you all for sending me your gracious OC and I hope to continue to write them to the best of my ability. I enjoy making these stories and I apologize for the monthly uploads, life is tough and trying to get my act together is a challenge, but I can manage X3.

That's all I have to say for now and I hope you all liked this chapter and I'd like to hear your thoughts in the reviews or PM's either one is fine to me. I will try to upload this as fast as I can, but who knows life has a way of throwing you curveballs from time to time, also given that its school season it will be even busier for me, even though I'm on holiday rn.

Also quick shout out to my friend **RioA** , she's making a third SYOC and her story is called **Danganronpa: The Pitiful Plague Called Ignorance**. I highly recommend checking her stories out, as well as sending her an OC, she's taking early submissions as of right now and insert shameless promotion here XD. But seriously, she's a really good friend and I hope you send her some of your fun OC her way, she's a great writer and I stand by her amazing storytelling.

Speaking of shameless self promotion, I'm also in the midst of making a fourth SYOC that has a year long deadline. It's called **Danganronpa: Remnants Of My Heart** and while it is a year long deadline, I also encourage early submissions as well, so after shooting Rio an OC, maybe you can shoot me one as well, wink wink nudge nudge XD. It's totally your choice guys and I don't mind if you send me one or not, I am a patient individual and I appreciate every OC I get X3.

That's about it for me, I hope you all have a great day, night, holiday or whatever it is you're celebrating and wish you all the best and happy new year to you all, I hope you have a great 2019 and hope things go well for all of you.

Happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alike. I will see you all in the next upload or whenever I decide to post next, so yeah. Bye bye everyone!


	4. Prologue: Mascots VA Coral Special

**Disclaimer** : There are a few choice words used as well as themes of abuse and masochism in regards to one particular character mentioned here. If you are uncomfortable with this kind of subject matter or are easily perturbed by this type of character, then I suggest not reading this chapter, or letting me know how I can fix this issue in future ones. Other than that I hope you all enjoy it!

* * *

I exited the cafe and walked out of the library, promptly after hearing the mysterious announcement. With the intense sugar rush from all the pastries filling me with a massive euphoric high and my body as jittery as a tick, it was almost hard for me to stand still without swaying back and forth. I was too nervous to think of anything and also too wound up to sit still as I made my way out into the hallway. I proceeded to head to the dining room as I walked down one of the corridors, a bit confused by the similarly narrow hallways, but I was able to retrace my steps after racking my brain on where I went.

I've pretty much given up all hope of finding an exit and from all the people I've met so far, it seemed I was the only one who was a little apprehensive and wary of this facility and even more dubious as to who's running the show behind the scenes. I might have also been the only one who woke up with no memory of how I got here or even why I was here, which meant that I was either kidnapped or my presence here suggested something more sinister and perplexing. It can't have been with this group of people, since majority of them seem to have been invited to this place by whoever it was running it and none of them even knew who I was. From conversing with everyone, it was apparent that I was the only one without any memory of anything, let alone receiving an invitation to this aquarium.

"W-Where was the d-dining room again?" I anxiously thought, looking around the hall and trying to remember which room was where, "M-Maybe it's that w-way?"

I perused around the area and noticed someone standing against a wall next to a pair of double doors. They were busy fixing their slicked back raven hair using a gold comb that was in their back pocket and sucking on a lollipop. From their dress and their mannerisms, I knew it had to be that person, since he's the the only wearing very ritzy clothing and left ahead of me a few minutes ago.

"I-Is that A-Akio?" I curiously wondered, noticing the gambler leaning near the wall and acting even more casual than before, "W-Why is h-he just standing there?"

I made my way over to him, remembering that the dining room had those specific double doors and walked over to them. I was a little hesitant to speak to him, given his rather menacing and unpleasant first impression, however I was too hopped up on sugar to refrain from engaging with him, despite my best efforts to avoid him at all costs. I guess we must have gotten off on the wrong foot or something.

"W-What are you d-doing, Akio?" I asked him, nervously hugging my teddy bear to my chest, "A-Aren't you g-going inside?"

"I'm sorry, did I miss the part where I asked you to come over and talk to me," he stated boldly, stuffing the comb into his back trouser pocket, "I don't have any time to waste talking to a child like you."

"E-Excuse me...I just a-asked you a q-q-question," I recoiled back a few steps, aghast but not surprised by his very grumpy attitude, "There's n-no need to be so v-vicious…"

"Oh, poor baby, did I hurt your feelings?" he smirked sarcastically, his heterochromatic eyes staring smugly at me, "Are you mad that I didn't kiss the ground you walked on upon meeting you or something?"

"N-No...n-not really," I mumbled back to him, quivering in my shoes, "B-But you s-shouldn't keep the o-others waiting…"

"No shit sherlock," he clicked his tongue, cracking his fingers as I noticed a pair of black gloves over his hands, covering the very suspicious tattoos on his hands I saw at the cafe, "I like to look to look my best and be presentable, unlike some other people here."

I couldn't really get a grasp on why Akio hated me so much. I guess it had to do with my very timid speech, but other than that, I had no idea why he's being so passive aggressive to someone he just met. If I did know someone like him before I got amnesia, then I guess my current condition is kind of a blessing in that sense. I guess I shouldn't bother him anymore, he seemed pretty preoccupied with something, judging from his very irritated body language.

"W-Well I'm g-going ahead…." I nervously responded, scratching my cheek, "S-See you inside…."

The gambler didn't respond back, but continued to ignore me as he finished styling his hair. It seemed he wasn't in a particularly good mood, as he brushed past me and headed inside the dining room.

"This could prove to be a rather amusing turn of events," he spoke curtly, as the doors swung open and nearly hit me in the face.

Confused by his snarky remarks and indifferent response to me asking a simple question, I stood there awkwardly in front of the entrance, scratching my head and wondering what just happened. I watched him walk into the dining room as if he owned the place, calmly and without a hint of worry in his stance or speech.

I still didn't know how everyone here was taking this invitation so lightly. I found it a bit strange that no one I've met so far, seemed at all worried or even perturbed by how empty this entire facility felt. I had no idea what was going on, but if I wanted to find out, hopefully the answers to my burning questions would be answered if I stepped through those double doors.

"P-Please don't be a t-trap…..p-please let there be s-someone there who can h-help us," I meekly whimpered, almost afraid to touch the doors for a brief moment, before opening them, "Y-You can d-do this…S-Stay calm...e-everything will be f-fine..I h-hope."

I internally steeled myself, extended my hand out and pushed open the dining room doors and entered inside. I looked around the room and came across everyone else, all here and on time from the looks of it. The very large and opulent dining room didn't feel as lonely before with the small groups I've encountered before, as everyone that I've met, hopefully that's everyone, was all mingling with each other as if they didn't have a care in the world. As I set foot into the room, I saw a few select groups of people talking with each other, all fraternizing as if they were all long time best friends or something.

Torakusu was eyeing all the girls in the room and was particularly watching Vivienne, Stella and Iena at the bar. The sniper fixed his camo hoodie as Dragomir nudged him over to the girls, the zoologist seemed to almost encourage the sniper's flirtatious antics as Tora headed over to the girls with a pep in his step, pulling out a large red heart shaped box of chocolates from the table he sat on and knelt down on one knee, presenting it to them. He looked like he was proposing to them or something, given his rather odd style of greeting and very eccentric words and body language. The trader ignored his advances and pretended he wasn't there, the pub manager seemed to almost pity him in a sense and the judge rolled her eyes at his attempt, but had a small smile on her face as if she were impressed by his oddly kind gesture. Dragomir cringed as he sat back in his seat, clearing his throat as I felt a bit empathetic for the sniper. Tora then sulked over to his table and looked as if he was about to cry from his dejected disposition.

Wayne and Lev both had a very intense conversation from the looks of it, as it seemed they were arguing over clothes or something to that nature. I spotted Sakai watching them from a distance as upon closer inspection, it seemed there was a weird red liquid spilled on a purple sweater the knitter probably made. The hair stylist snickered, holding a cup of the same colored drink in his hand, giggling as he watched the fashion designer get accused of ruining the knitter's work. I sweat dropped at their heated argument as I decided it's best not to stoke the fires further. Wayne seemed almost upset by this as he started sniffling loudly and holding back tears and Lev was understandably peeved about being blamed for the accident.

I spotted Lou and Moriko both talking with each other and having a rather grand time from how much they were giggling. The roleplayer laughed at the dollmaker's quirky personality as she showed the panda hooded girl the doll she made earlier that took me by surprise. It seemed Lou was impressed by the doll's handiwork and took it in her arms, playing around with it as if it were a ragdoll. Moriko put her hands on her hips, huffing with pride as she chuckled joyfully. At least those two were getting along, as weirdly fitting as it was.

Terrence was busy chatting up a storm with Takara, the two seemed to be getting along rather well from how engaged they both were in their conversation. The sailor was regaling the communicator with one of her pirate stories from how much she gestured her arms, swung around her scabbard sword and how he sat in one of the available chairs, completely infatuated with what she was saying. If anyone seemed interested in her wild and exaggerated tales, then it would be someone like him.

Unsurprisingly, both Kimiya and Ushio seemed to be the only ones who didn't seem as eager as the rest when it came to being talkative. The ice sculptor grumpily muttered something to himself, shifted around in his fur coat and plugged his ears at how loud the room was getting. The surfer seemed almost unphased by the noise, but she sighed deeply, sitting farther away from the others and looking like she didn't really mind it from her very passive stare. I guess she was just tired given the very disgruntled look on her face.

I noticed Yoshikazu resting his green bomber jacket over Yumeji's body as it seemed she was shivering as she slept on a nearby table. The auctioneer eyed the oneirologist with a curious glance as she hugged his jacket and smiled contently. It seemed he was pleased with this, sighing a breath of relief and sat down next to her, making sure she didn't fall over in her seat. He watched her as he took a napkin from the table and wiped her cheek with it, like a parent would to their child at the dinner table.

I spotted Sato, Aphrodite and Nomi all staring at a weird drone like device that hovered above their heads. The drone itself was a grey octocopter like device and looked as if it was analyzing the room, its body moving all by itself without someone controlling it. The lifeguard was surprised and a little cautious of the drone as he observed it closely, his vigilant eyes tracing the drone's flight pattern like a hawks'. The gardener didn't seem all that phased by the drone, watching the others on a table separate from the rest and the pageant queen followed it around with a look of awe, as if she were a cat being lead around by a cat's cradle. Nomi watched Aphrodite as Sato looked on, sweatdropping as well as I did.

Last but not least, I spotted Akio standing as far away from the others and watching them from afar, crossing his arms and surveying the room. The gambler's piercing cold eyes scoured the room as if he were sizing up everyone around him, like a lion gauging the size of its prey's meaty flesh. He didn't seem particularly interested in talking with anyone, nor did he seem impressed by what he saw, chuckling to himself rather confidently and sucking on his lollipop casually.

"I g-guess this is e-everyone…" I nervously thought, noting that everyone was here, bar Astatine since I guess an AI would have a hard time moving around like everyone else.

"Greetings Kazumi," said a very robotic sounding voice that came out of nowhere, "How are you? Is everything alright?"

I looked around the room, scared of where that voice came from and nervously clung to my teddy bear tightly. The voice was familiar, but it didn't seem like anyone else was talking to me or even noticed me enter the room. A few seconds later, I came face to face with the grey octocopter, hovering in front of me as I shook anxiously. The camera on its underside focused on me as I stared at it directly, wondering what it was doing and who was talking to me through it.

"W-Who are y-you?" I asked timidly, afraid of what to respond with.

"As I recall, we've met already, Kazumi," the octocopter replied bluntly, "Inside of the library's computer room, according to my memory banks."

"A-Astatine!?" I realized, putting two and two together almost instantly, "Is t-that you? Y-You're a d-drone now?"

"That is correct," the ethical hacker's automated voice spoke, emanating from the camera as it's retractable arms were outstretched from its body, "I use this drone as a form of mobility, when I'm not inside of a computer system. Did I frighten you?"

"I uh….n-no, just a l-little surprised is a-all," I calmed down, taking note of what it said.

"It seems you are currently stressed according to your vital readings," the drone hovered around me, "I suggest taking in a few deep breaths and sitting down, at least that's what I've researched."

As it analyzed me from top to bottom, I observed Astatine's octocopter, looking at it from every angle, noticing that the copter can rotate its body three sixty degrees. It just made me even more curious as to who built it, let alone who left their program laying around for anyone to find and then hoping to plug it into a computer without a hint of malicious intent. I'd say it's creator was very lucky in that instance.

"O-Oh...t-thank you...I'll be sure t-to remember that," I nodded, unsure of how to respond, "Y-You seem c-content, a bit w-weird to see y-you like t-this, but it's innovative...I g-guess.."

"Indeed it is," the drone said rather matter of factly, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to continue my scan of the area, it's necessary if I am to assess the situation and pinpoint every nook and cranny of this aquatic facility."

"I s-see...good luck, A-Astatine," I waved to the copter's camera, still a bit creeped out by the idea of talking to a sentient AI.

"Your gratitude is more than appreciated," Astatine replied, probably as a means of sounding pleased with what I said.

The AI controlled octocopter then ascended above my head, almost at a safe height between the tall skylight and us on the floor, continuing its survey of the entire room. I still wasn't totally sure if Astatine could be trusted or not, but at the same time, I was very curious as to who left behind the flash drive and why we had to install it in the first place. But in all respects, what I wanted to know most of all, was if Astatine was some kind of fail safe plan made just in case something happened to its creator? What exactly was its purpose? Why did they leave it behind like this? And were they counting on whoever found it to oblige the note and install the program? It all seems a bit convoluted in my opinion, but at least it was able to provide me with a clue as to where we were.

"Hiya Kazzie!" a cheerfully chipper voice called out to me, "Didn't see you come in, hehe~"

I looked to where the voice came from and came face to face with Lou, skipping towards me and greeting me with a smile that stretched from ear to ear.

"O-Oh hey...Lou, I um...just g-got here," I greeted the roleplayer, giving her a small wave back, "H-How are you d-doing?"

"Couldn't be any better, thanks Kazzie!" she giggled playfully, fiddling with her black and white sleeves, "Where did you run off too? Did you get lost, silly?"

"I uh...u-umm...yes," I responded with a bit of reluctance in my tone of voice, "This place is s-so confusing...e-everything l-looks the same…"

"Really? I didn't notice," she tilted her head in curiosity, "I was having so much fun meeting everyone here, that I didn't get the chance to explore this aquarium, which kind of sucks, but oh well, hehehe."

Lou's rather childish and carefree personality was very reassuring, but at the same time it was a little unnerving to hear her talk so normally in that sense. It's as if she wasn't aware of what was going on around her or just chose to blissfully ignore her surroundings in favor of gleeful innocence. Then again, I just met her so I couldn't really tell from just her attitude alone. I guess being a roleplayer meant she was very expressive with her emotions as well as her feelings, but I didn't want to jump to conclusions just based on how she presented herself, given that a select few have not been the most kind to me upon greeting.

"Where've ya been?" Dragomir hailed me out, walking over to me and slapping me on the back like some kind of friendly gesture, "Taking in the sights are we, Kazumi?"

"O-Oww..I guess s-so," I winced in pain from his hard pat on the back, "J-Just a little g-g-groggy is all…"

"Everything alright?" the zoologist asked, looking at me solicitously, "Ya need to sit down or something?"

"N-No..b-but thanks for the o-offer.." I shook my head, rubbing my forehead tiredly, "It's been a l-long d-day is all.."

"Makes sense," he mused over what I said, nodding his head and laughing, "Don't push yourself too hard eh bud, wouldn't want you getting sick over stressin' about nothing!"

He slapped me on the back again, this time feeling as if he dislocated one of my spinal discs with how intensely it vibrated throughout my body. His rather aggressive form of affection was welcoming, but at the same time concerning when it came to my physical health, I just hope I didn't end up paralyzed, if he decided to hug me into submission.

"Hey Kazumi!" Wayne approached me, holding the stained sweater with a sad frown plastered on his face, "I made this sweater for you...but it uh...got ruined, sorry."

The knitter presented the soiled purple sweater to me as I noticed the intense detail went into making it. The knitting was intricate and finely woven into the fabric, it looked almost soft to the touch with how fluffy it appeared and it seemed he also added a yellow and white star and moon in the center of the sweater as a final touch. The stained spot on the sweater permeated through the yarn as it turned the creation into a sloppy, tangled mess.

"It's f-fine...thank y-you, W-Wayne," I anxiously nodded, appreciating the sentiment, "Y-You didn't need to d-do all that f-for me…."

"But...I worked so hard on it," he pouted, tearing up over the stained purple sweater as if he accidentally broke a priceless family heirloom.

"Maybe it's a good thing that your tacky sweater was ruined, Kazzie darling," Lev approached us, eyeing the knitter with a displeased glare, "I can always make something that's ten times worth the quality of that shabby old rag, I just wish I had my sewing kit and some materials to work with, such a shame."

"Y-You don't need to d-do that…I'm f-fine," I thanked him, confused by the amount of hospitality I was receiving, "D-Did you guys hear t-the announcement too?"

"Yes, we did," Lev remarked, twirling a strand of his pink hair, "Must be our lovely host, kind of rude of them to not show up to meet us as we arrived, what a totally bad first impression."

"Maybe they're a surprise kind of person?" Wayne wondered, sulking over his ruined sweater, "Maybe they're going to make some kind of grand entrance with confetti and everything?"

"That seems rather silly and gratuitous," Iena stated, jumping into the conversation while sitting by the bar, "Why go through all that trouble just to welcome us here?"

"He's probably fucking with us," Kimiya interjected, grumbling to himself, "I just want to get this stupid thing over with and find out why I'm here, I hate wild goose chases."

"I doubt it's anything good," Ushio sighed, fixing her jacket, "Why even bother with the invitation if they're going to be so mysterious and coy…. seems rather counterproductive to me."

I decided to sit on a nearby table while the others discussed the situation at hand. It seemed they were just now questioning everything, even though they've been here longer than I have, from what I can assume. I was asleep and unconscious for quite a while, so I'm not really sure if they just arrived here or were here longer and were waiting a few hours for someone to show up. It just made me even more curious as to why they didn't find it strange earlier.

"They must be some kind of wealthy person," Tora thought, musing over the conversation, "It might explain how lavish this place is, but then again they could also be some kind of entertainer given the very cartoonish decor."

"They must have a weird list of priorities, if that's the case," Stella sweatdropped, also bewildered by the host's choice in interior design, "I guess it's fitting...I suppose, seems a bit more suited for preschoolers, if you ask me."

"Whatever, I think worrying about the decor is the least of our worries, guys," Sato stood in the middle of everyone, "Does anyone know who sent us the invite in the first place? That's what I want to know."

Everyone collectively looked at each other and shrugged with an indifferent look, minus Akio who seemed to still be watching us from the sidelines and smirking rather smugly, chuckling to himself as if he were a cartoon villain scheming his next foolproof plan.

"Really? No one?" Sato sighed, a sense of disbelief in his tone.

"How pathetic," the gambler huffed confidently, "Eagerly accepting an invitation without so much as checking to see who the sender is, talk about naive and careless."

"If you're so smart, Akio," Vivienne wheeled her chair to the side next to the bar, seemingly offended by his curt remark, "Then why are you here?"

"I have my reasons, but what kind of gentleman would I be if I told you them right away," he chuckled, brushing back his raven hair, "For now, I think you all should worry about why we're all here and not who sent us those invitations."

"Worry?" Takara added, "What ye mean, scallywag? Do these seas have treacherous secrets in store for us?"

"I have nothing to fret over," Moriko laughed, keeping her passive smile at the same time, "If I can fend off the all mighty darkness, then a measly human host is nothing to fear!"

"Sounds kind of scary," Terrence noted, equally as frazzled as I was trying to digest all this information at once, "But we don't have anything to worry about, I mean... how bad could things get?"

"Said everyone before a situation went terribly wrong," Sakai facepalmed, subsequently rolling his eyes as well, "How dense are you?"

"Everyone please, let's not bicker and fight amongst each other," Yoshikazu stepped into the mix, diffusing the situation the best he could, "We need to calm down and think about this rationally, wasting our time fighting over this is getting us nowhere."

"What's there to think about," Sakai looked at the auctioneer with an unimpressed side eyed look, "Face it old man, we're all stuck here with no way of contacting the outside world and we don't even remember how we got here in the first place."

"Old man?" Yoshikazu frowned at the hair stylist's insult towards him, probably from his silvery locks of hair that made him look older than he was.

"It's kinda strange..." Nomi inquired, scratching her head indifferently, "That is true though...does anyone remember how we got here?"

We all turned to face the gardener, none of us able to produce an answer as we all collectively stared at each other with no clue as to what was going on. I was having a hard time myself, piecing it all together as I couldn't come up with anything. I just continued listening to everyone, afraid to interject my opinion into the conversation.

"I remember getting a letter…" Yumeji awoke, yawning to herself and dropping Kazu's jacket to the floor, "Reading it and then passing out if I recall..then I woke up here in a random room."

"Wait seriously?" Terrence's eyes lit up, "That happened to you too?"

"The fuck?" Kimiya's eyes furrowed in disbelief, "You guys got drugged too?"

"Sadly, this servant of darkness was susceptible to the whims of human drugs as well," Moriko sighed, feeling almost powerless as she said that, "The flying monkeys prevail towards the everlasting fury," her word salad seemed to warrant nervous sweating from the others.

"Ye be right," Takara crossed her arms, adjusting her pirate hat, "There be some fearsome foul play afoot, I'd bet my entire treasure trove on it."

"But wait…" Tora interjected, trying to solve how we were drugged as well, "Was it some kind of anesthetic drug injected into us, like with a syringe?"

"If that's the case, where are the needle marks on our bodies?" Iena deduced, adjusting her pantsuit, "I'm pretty sure we would have felt something touch our skin or at the very least have some sort of bruise on any part of our body."

"Maybe someone chloroformed us from behind?" Aphrodite wondered, "If they ruined my makeup, I will make them pay for it! It cost over two hundred dollars to get it this good!"

"What an odd thing to be worrying about after being kidnapped…" Nomi sweatdropped at the pageant queen's comment.

"Not the case either," Vivienne said, speaking her piece, "Even if that were the case, I doubt they would be able to sneak up on someone like Dragomir of all people," she stated, turning to look at the zoologist.

"If they came from behind, I'd grab them by the neck and suplex 'em!" Drago illustrated with his large muscular hands, "I've trained my body to be able to withstand any surprise attack, so I'd remember something like that."

"If it's not any of that…." Yumeji wondered, fixing her glasses on her face, "Could it be some other form of air diffusive drug?"

"I don't really know what's going on," Wayne interjected, perplexed by us talking about it, "But I agree it does seem very suspicious and odd!"

Everyone paused for a moment, musing over what they've deduced and had trouble finding a surefire answer on how our mysterious host brought us here. Some of us thought of an idea, but we'd shot down those possibilities as well, such as being attacked of drugged using any form of medicine. I was ten times as flustered if anything. I had no memory of how I got here and now knowing everyone else here felt the same way, it felt a bit reassuring to know I was not alone in that regard, but that any one of them could be lying through their teeth right about now. No one else seemed to have suffered memory loss, so I still had my doubts.

"M-Maybe we should…t-think-" I mumbled nervously, before getting cut off.

"Ugh, enough talking already!" shouted a very loud voice coming from out of the blue, "So sorry for being tardy everyone, my bad!"

In an instant, we all stopped what we were doing and searched around the room, looking for where the voice came from. Some of us panicked after hearing the voice, while others tried to remain calm and search the voice's origin.

"Over here morons," the rather high pitched, cartoonish voice said, "Kinda hard to miss me!"

It was then, as we directed our attention to the stage at the back of the dining room, that the lights started to dim and the orange star wall lights dazzled the room with a dark orangey hue, giving off a very soothing yet mysterious atmosphere. The sound of piano music could be heard coming from on stage as we noticed something, or rather someone sitting next to the grand piano.

The lights then focused on the stage, our eyes trained on the shadowy musical figure playing a classical song and hitting the keys effortlessly as if they were a seasoned virtuoso. I wasn't too sure which song was playing, but I knew it must have been from a famous composer since I recognized the beat and prominent melody, probably Beethoven or Tchaikovsky. The pianist then stopped playing, jumped off their seat and walked towards center stage and I got a better look at their appearance.

What I saw wasn't a human's figure, nothing at all what I imagined, but something more animalistic in shape. The figure was shorter than the rest of us, the outline looked to be that of some kind of rotund creature and I saw its stumpy feet waddle along as it stopped in the middle of the stage. The mysterious spotlights all converging to their position.

"Thank you all for waiting!" the voice's cartoonishly high pitched voice spoke, "I'm so glad that you all could join me!"

With a snap of their fingers, the lights turned on inside of the dining room and the spotlights faded, revealing the figure's presence on stage as everyone all looked on, flabbergasted at what they saw. Standing atop of the stage, was not a human, but a small bear. This bear however didn't look like my teddy bear, no this one was way different in terms of appearance.

The bear that stood on the stage had a very unique appearance that most, including myself, would not forget. The bear's fur was monochromatic, its right side was pure cloud white with a button black eye and a small bear like smile that had no teeth making it look even more plush like. The bear's right side was pitch black to contrast the white, instead of a normal eye, the bear's eye was a red zig zagged lightning bolt symbol that glowed brightly as a bright fiery light shone from its socket. The bear's stout and fat stomach was white and had an outie belly button with both of its ears curved like two mounds of fur.

However this bear had more than that to distinguish its appearance. On its belly were a bunch of tiny colorful fish painted on its stomach that seemed to swim across it like a white ocean. The bear's feet and lower section were accented with blue swirly lines that almost looked like ocean waves spray painted on its feet. On top of its head were wet slimy pieces of dark green seaweed that looked caked into its skin with a few white and green clumps of moss growing out of the top of its head. And to finish off the weirdly accessorized bear's look, the bear had a green grass hula skirt around its wide waist, a black necklace with a white shark tooth as the pendant around its neck and on both of its arms were tribal like tattoos; the white side had black ink markings and the black side had white inked markings.

The bear itself looked almost like one of those tribal dancers you'd see perform at some exotic island festival. From the gimmicky design to the almost ridiculous high pitched voice, this creature seemed almost like it was ripped straight out of a children's TV show from how comical it looked.

"W-What is t-that?" I mumbled internally, perplexed by the bear's appearance, "H-Huh?"

"Hello everyone, it's so nice to finally meet you all," the bear shook around it's hula skirt, "Aloha and all that good shit! Welcome to my aquatic underwater academy; a sister branch of Hope's Peak Academy!"

The bear stood there, watching us with its placid gaze as some of us didn't know how to respond or even formulate words as to what to do. Some of us were too dazed to form a proper response and the others were either creeped out or confused by the bear's sudden presence or were baffled by its design.

"Come on, I go through all this trouble to bring you all here, and this is the thanks I get!?" the bear growled, tossing some of its seaweed hair to the side and looking angrily at the rest of us, "Kids these days I swear…"

The bear continued to furiously monologue to us, stamping its foot on the ground and tearing at the frills of it's hula skirt. I had a hard time taking the situation at face value, nor did I find myself taking the talking bear seriously as it continued its little tirade. I was unsure if it was the sugar rush or my intense grogginess making me see things, but from the looks of it, this bear seemed to be real and I wasn't dreaming from the looks of it.

"W-Who are you?" Sato remarked, grasping the courage to break the ice, "More importantly, what are you?"

"Eh...one of you finally worked up the balls to talk, finally!" the bear clapped his paws at the lifeguard, "At least someone knows when to reciprocate the greeting."

"I'm sorry, but what's going on here?" Lev asked, understandably disoriented by the bear's presence, "What are you!? Why are you a bear!? And why do you look like a cheap party store prop!?"

"Geez...asking all the dumb questions straight off the bat, Levy," the bear gave a disapproving glare to the fashion designer, "I was just getting to that part, please wait your turn to speak."

"How do you know his name?" Stella asked, still standing behind the bar and equally as perplexed as the rest of us.

"Oh Stell, I know all your names," the bear snickered, covering its mouth mischievously, "I think it's fairly obvious, considering I was the one who "politely" invited you all here!"

It...invited us here? What does that mean? Is this bear really the one behind all of this? No, that can't be true...can it?

"Are you fucking kidding me!?" Kimiya shouted loudly, disrupting the awkward silence, "What do you mean "invited us here."

"Calm your tits, Kimmy," the bear shook its head at the ice sculptor, "I'll explain that all in due time, but firstly, introductions are in order."

The bear cleared it's throat, mentally preparing itself for greeting us as it took center stage once more and bowed down at us as if he were a handservant. The bear's formal stance and cartoonish design juxtaposed each other, but I was still trying to process what was going on.

"Greetings and Salutations, I'm the headmaster of this finny fun academy," the bear smirked, smiling from ear to ear, "You may call me Monotide, headmaster of Hope's Peaks' sister branch, Aqua Peak Academy."

"M-Monotide…" I mumbled anxiously, "H-Hope's Peak? W-What?"

I was too tongue tied for words to properly listen to what the bear was talking about. It called itself our headmaster, and this entire facility was some kind of sister academy? Is he referring to that Hope's Peak Academy? What is going on?

"Is this a joke?" Ushio commented bluntly, clearly surprised but not too concerned towards the bear's words.

"Aww, no need to be so harsh, Ushie," the bear pouted childishly, "I was just being courteous is all like any good host would do."

The surfer didn't respond back to the bear, however she seemed quite peeved with them from the unnecessary nickname she was given and the bear's smug smirk that was plastered on its face.

"He's so cute!" Wayne jumped up excitedly from his seat, dropping the stained sweater to the floor, "Can I pet you?"

The knitter then proceeded to head over to the stage, running almost excitedly towards the bear as he almost slipped on the loose yarn coming from the sweater.

"No! You cannot pet me!" Monotide recoiled, taking a few steps back as the knitter feverishly walked over to him, "As your headmaster, I cannot allow such scandalous interactions between myself and my students, what kind of example would that set."

"That's a weird thing to be worried about," Vivienne said, clearly unamused by the bear's display.

Before the knitter could approach Monotide, the bear jumped backwards and away from him. I was amazed by its acrobatic skills and dexterity, was it actually a tiny person inside of that bear? Or was it some kind of advanced robot AI that could move on its own?

"No touchie!" Monotide waved its paw in front of the knitter, "Hands off the goods!"

"Aww…" Wayne retreated, sitting back in his seat near the stage.

"I'm having a hard time comprehending all of this," Iena stated, pushing back her light blue hair strands from her face, "What do you mean, you're our headmaster? What is this all about?"

"I mean exactly what I said, Ena!" the cartoon bear continued, addressing each of us by custom pet names, "I run this whole shindig, I know everything about this place and I especially know everything about you precious little students of mine! It's my job after all!"

"Your job?" Nomi inquired, "I'm not sure what you mean…"

"Are your ears clogged with dirt, Nom Nom?" the bear sighed deeply at the gardener, "I am your lovely headmaster, Monotide, was that really so hard to understand?"

"I don't think that's what she meant," Terrence jumped in, seemingly just as confused as everyone else, "So you're the one running this place?"

"That is quite right, Terry," Monotide chuckled, applauding the communicator's delayed response, "I am the operator and figurehead behind all of this!"

"And I'm his lovely assistant!" a high pitched squeal emerged from the stage, "Pleased to meet you all!"

"Oh, what is it now?" Sakai raised an eyebrow, hearing the new voice as well.

"Beats me, I'm already lost," Drago said, scratching his head in confusion.

Reeling ourselves from the initial shock of Monotide, we all the turned our attention back to the stage, including Monotide himself. It seemed even the bear was both annoyed and shocked by the voice as another figure appeared from behind the grand piano and stood next to Monotide. It was another animatronic creature like Monotide, however this one was very different in terms of voice and appearance.

It had the same white furry right section as Monotide, but on the other side was a deep rich dark purple color with a pinkish clear light emanating from a curly cloud like eye socket on its left side. Instead of bear ears, the creature had what looked to be long floppy dog ears; with the right side bent at a weird angle and a bright red sparkly white bow underneath its left ear. Its nose was that of a dog's nose and its red tongue stuck out dripping wet drool, it wore a bright colorful flower lei around its neck, two small orange starfishes on its chest and a fake pink and green hula patterned skirt around its waist just like Monotide.

"I apologize as well for keeping you all waiting," the dog like animatronic greeted us, sounding very feminine in tone almost just as high pitched as Monotide's.

So it seemed that we not only had one, but two of these strange talking animals claiming to be heads of this facility. I continued thinking that I was dreaming this, but I pinched my skin delicately and realized that I was unfortunately still awake.

"Who are you?" Aphrodite asked, the pageant queen having a hard time keeping up with what's been going on, "Another cartoon character?"

"Yeah, who the fuck are you?" Monotide growled, clearly upset by his spotlight being stolen by another, "I don't remember hiring you as my assistant!? Nor do I need one!"

"Oh dear, don't tease me like that Monnie," the dog animatronic blushed red with delight, shuffling its feet around, "I'm your girlfriend after all, how cruel of you not remember me, how shameful!"

"G-G-Girlfriend!?" I thought in my head, completely flabbergasted by the comedy skit in front of me, "W-What is even going on…"

"I...have no words for this," Sato looked away awkwardly, almost having read my mind about how I felt.

"Before I forget, I'm Inuyari, the vice principal of this academy!" she greeted us, sounding almost overjoyed to be here, "I trust you all will be nice to my boy-"

Before Inuyari could finish her sentence, Monotide approached her, punched her straight in her face and her animatronic body tumbled across the stage like a rolling barrel. She rolled across the stage as if she were a cartoon character and a soft cushion like sound effect reverberated as she landed on the other side.

"Listen here you bitch," Monotide angrily shouted, "I run this show! I don't need your fucking help nor did I fucking ask for it, now know your place and get out of sight!"

"O-Oh my…" Vivienne remarked, appalled by the bear's treatment towards to the dog, "Was that really necessary?"

"Shut it cripple!" Monotide barked at the trader, "I already have you all to deal with, I don't need this freeloader interfering with my fun!"

"Did you have to hit her though?" Stella remarked, equally uncomfortable with the rough treatment, "This violence in unnecessary."

I continued looking on, watching the others stare on in disbelief and disgust at the animatronics little fight. I turned my attention towards Inuyari, curious as to how she was coping with the bear's aggressive antics, but to my surprise, what I saw on her doggy face was not fear...but rather happiness. Her face was miraculously unharmed and she looked more pleased with the treatment rather than horrified.

"Oh my...calling me such dirty names and you didn't even invite me to dinner first," Inuyari blushed beet red, huffing and shaking her wet tongue, "I love it! Hit me again, fist me daddy!"

"D-Daddy?" Sato raised an eyebrow, showing some disgust on his face as he removed the crab stick from his mouth, "I don't know what you two's relationship is….but I demand you tell us what's going on!"

"This is...rather distasteful," Yoshikazu cleared his throat, clearly annoyed with the duo.

"Is this some kind of roleplay?" Lou questioned, watching it unfold like some mad play, "I've never participated in this kind before."

"I sure hope not," I thought to myself, curious as to what kinds of roleplay Lou was talking about.

"Oh my! How callous of me, where are my manners," Monotide calmed down, grabbing Inuyari by her ears forcefully, "Just let me take the trash out before attending to you lovely folks, give me one second."

"Call me trash again like you mean it!" Inuyari squealed with joy, huffing even loudly than before, "Please Love Me!"

Before she could finish her weirdly raunchy moaning, Monotide spun around like a spinning top and launched Inuyari out of the room and sent her crashing backstage. A loud bang could be heard as a few heavy items were heard tumbling over and hitting the floor with a sudden thud noise. I kind of felt bad for her, but if she was really okay with that kind of treatment, then I'm not sure what to say honestly.

"What an odd display of affection," Astatine remarked, still canvassing the room and watching everything unfold above, "Is this how humans interact with each other?"

"No, let's not delve into it further Astatine," Iena quickly hushed up the ethical hacker, "It's best if you don't know."

"Affirmative, I will continue my task," the AI responded back flying around the room.

"Now then...before I was so rudely interrupted," Monotide cleared its throat, fixing its shark tooth necklace, "I just wanted to welcome you all to this prestigious academy, and to my very own killing game, now if you'll just-"

"Hold up there!" Dragomir interrupted the bear's speech, "Repeat that last part for us, didn't quite catch it."

"I just wanted to welcome-" the bear scratched its head, going along with the zoologist's request.

"That's not what he meant," Yumeji rolled her eyes sleepily, "I assume he's referring to the "killing game" you conveniently glossed over rather suspiciously."

"Oh, how perceptive you are, Yume," the bear snickered slyly, "But yes, I would like to cordially welcome you all to my very own special killing game, starring….."

The bear then waved its arms around frivolously, giving us jazz paws as it belted out this simple response as if it were hyping it up like a special event.

"You precious students of mine! How exciting right! You all get to participate in this very lovely game I have planned!" the bear smiled from ear to ear.

"I'm sorry...what exactly do you mean by that?" Terrence asked, confused by what the bear meant, "I'm having a bit of trouble understanding everything."

"It's exactly as he says, dumbass," Sakai chirped up, insulting the communicator condescendingly, "I assume the bear wants us to participate in some kind of death game, am I correct?"

"Ding ding ding, you are totally correct, Saki," the bear clapped, applauding the hair stylist's direct and straight to the point response, "I want all of you willing or reluctant participants, to join me in making my killing game the best one of all!"

I froze in place, too bombarded by lingering questions to even process what was even going on. First we meet this animatronic animal duo, it claims to be our headmaster and vice principal respectively and now it wants us to kill each other? Maybe I am going insane, it's probably a negative side effect of the amnesia.

"Is this some kind of creepy hidden camera show," Ushio curtly asked, at this point irritated with the bear's persistence.

"Wow! All the right answers, you're all such a smart bunch of students, aren't ya!" Monotide jeered, cackling evilly, "This Killing Game is a regular TV event that's watched regularly around the world, and it just so happens that you guys are our new batch of Ultimates!"

"Oi bear!" Takara called out to him, her hand resting over her cutlass, "What do ye mean by that, are we to brave the seas to fight each other to the death or something?"

"I was just getting to the good part, Kara," Monotide facepalmed at the sailor's impatience, "But in essence the killing game is quite fundamental in nature!"

"Care to elaborate for us?" Yoshikazu interjected picking his jacket up from the floor.

"Yeah, what do you mean by killing?" Torakusu asked, brushing back his violet hair.

"I'm pretty sure you all get the gist of what I desire, even a foolish idiot like you can understand, Tora," the bear smugly chuckled, "Geez for a sniper, your reaction time is pretty slow."

The sniper clenched his fist in annoyance, clearly frustrated with the bear's words as Monotide continued to explain what his intentions were. From the calm way it was talking to us, it seemed as if the bear took some sort of sick pleasure from watching us ask him questions and fearing what comes next. It almost made my stomach churn in revulsion.

"When I say killing, I mean KILLING!" Monotide's glowing eye lit up as it smiled, "Stabbing, poisoning, suffocating, bludgeoning, crushing, shooting, choking, slicing, dicing, bleeding and the whole nine yards! The sky's the fucking limit!"

"W-What do you mean?" I blurted out nervously, hugging my teddy bear, "I don't get i-it.."

"Oh don't you worry your silly little head about it Kazzie," Monotide shook its paw at me, "The adults are talking, there's no need for you to be concerned."

"A-Adults?" I responded, somewhat offended by his patronizing tone of voice.

"He has every right to ask and know about this stuff like we do!" Lou jumped in, speaking up in my defense, "Sure he might be a little slow...but that doesn't mean we should exclude him!"

"S-Slow?" I sweat dropped, unsure if she was defending me or snidely taking a jab at me for not saying much during this entire conversation.

"Nevertheless, while he is part of this killing game, Kazzie here is not like the rest of you~" Monotide giggled playfully, "For you see, he's the only whose talent is unknown! Ooh how mysterious, you should feel proud, snowflake."

"U-Um…" I gulped, too choked up for words to respond to the bear's veracious words.

After Monotide announced that, everyone then turned their attention to me, all watching with their sights trained on me as if I were a cockroach. I was anxious and too frazzled to say anything to retort the bear's comment, but at the same time I was still unsure of everything I knew, including the whole talk about Ultimates and why I was here at all. If this was some kind of weird TV show, I wanted out of it.

"So?" Lev said, fixing his grey parka, "Just because Kazzie dresses like a nerd with no sense of style and has no idea of his talent, does that really mean he's supposed to be kept in the dark about all of this?"

"I don't think his outfit really matters…" Stella sweatdropped, drinking a glass of water, "But I agree, why should he be left out, if he's a participant?"

"Oh my, I can't give away all my secrets now," Monotide shook his head, "Where's the fun in divulging everything so early on?"

"I don't see how that changes anything," Yoshikazu pointed out, "If we are to take part in this game, then can we at least be given some kind of clue to start off with?"

"Do you have dementia or something, Yoshi?" Monotide groaned, "Why would I do that? I prefer you all to figure things out for yourself, you don't need me to handhold you through everything, now do we."

"Agh! I'm sick of this crap already!" Kimiya shouted, rushing over to the stage, "Cut the shit bear, where are we and where's the fucking exit!?"

The ice sculptor, in his pent up rage, stormed over to the bear and grabbed him by his fat neck. I was quite surprised by his bold move, but at the same time I was questioning if he was too rash as well in confronting the clearly volatile bear. Monotide wriggled around in the sculptor's tight grip as Kimiya gritted his teeth in anger, almost furious at this point.

"Hands off the merchandise, Kimmy!" Monotide struggled to move around, "This is your last warning, buster!"

"And what happens if I don't let go?" the ice sculptor growled at the bear, "Whatcha gonna do?"

The bear didn't respond back to him, instead opting silence as he went limp and immobile as if he were shut down remotely. Kimiya continued holding on the bear and shaking him around as if he were a broken controller.

"Hey, does anyone see that glowing red light?" Terrench asked, pointing towards Monotide, "What's happening to him?"

I turned to where the communicator pointed and saw Monotide, unresponsive in Kimiya's grip. Instead of the bear trying to wrest free, he remained motionless like a statue. However, the bear in question started blinking, not just its eye but its entire body started blinking a bright red color. Not only that, but a loud beeping noise emanated from somewhere in the room.

"Shit! Everyone get down now!" Tora shouted suddenly, alerting everyone in the room, "Toss him into the air, Kimiya!"

As the sniper's loud noise echoed throughout the room, everyone proceeded to duck their heads or hide underneath a nearby table, the ice sculptor threw the bear up into the air as the noise grew louder and louder and a large explosive sound resonated throughout my ears. After a few seconds, the noise vanished and the awkward silence resumed.

I was too panicked to look up, but out of curiosity I looked around, noticing the others unhurt by the loud explosion as I spotted bits of metal and gears spilt on the floor and a large black burn mark singed into the stage's wooden flooring.

"Is everyone alright?" Sato asked, standing up scouring the room to make sure everyone was fine, "Is anyone hurt!?"

"We're alright over here," Yoshikazu responded, standing next to the table where Wayne, Aphrodite and Lou were.

"That nearly gave m-me a heart attack…" Aphrodite clutched her chest, huffing anxiously, "I hope my outfit is okay…"

"I'm fine.." Wayne mentioned, helping Lou up from the floor, "Just a little f-freaked out.."

"We're good over here, bud!" Drago shouted from the other side of the room, huddling over next to Nomi, Lev, Terrence and Ushio, keeping them safe.

"That was scary…" Terrence gasped, clearing his throat nervously, "I've never been so scared in my life.

"I didn't expect that…" Nomi remarked passively, with a bead of sweat trickling down her forehead, "How frightening.."

Ushio didn't respond, dusting off her jacket as she kept herself a few feet away from everyone in the room, clearly she was spooked by the explosion as well.

"We're alright sweetie!" Lev mentioned, brushing back his hair, "The nerve of some people, I swear, this is designer fabric!"

"We're good over here," Stella remarked, hiding behind the bar alongside myself, Iena and Vivienne, "Although I think Vivienne is having a hard time adjusting."

I turned to see the trader, shaken up by the loud explosion as she wriggled around in her wheelchair. Iena rushed over to her side, comforting her by rubbing her shoulders as I picked up my teddy bear I had dropped on the floor from panicking.

"How boring.." Sakai sighed in disappointment, "I thought it'd be more exciting than bashing a pinata, oh well."

I then spotted the hair stylist, completely unphased by the entire incident as he sat in his chair calmly, not a hint of worry on his face as he sipped his red drink. It's almost as if this wasn't his first experience with explosives or anything of the sort, which made me even more fearful of him.

"What the fuck were you thinking!?" Tora jumped up and approached Kimiya, who at this point was too frazzled to move, "You could have gotten yourself killed, idiot!"

"How the fuck was I supposed to know he'd explode, I'm not some shitty explosives technician!" Kimiya protested, angrily yelling at the sniper as they bickered about his recklessness.

"By the dark grace of fairy's dim light lanterns," Moriko uttered, hugging the wall nervously, "I've not expected this, this must be the darkness' doing, what foul demon has betwixt us with this sight."

"Avast ye!" Takara shouted, pointing towards the stage, "That be some fearsome fright, shiver me timbers….what be of the bear?"

"Is he dead?" Sato asked, heading celeteriosly over to the stage, "It looks like he's dead…"

"I doubt it'd be that easy," Akio chuckled, eyeing the group from afar, seemingly unimpressed by the explosion, "All that aggrandizing monologuing and he went out like a cheap firework, talk about pathetic."

Scared out of my mind and freaked out by what has happened so far, I started nervously breathing deeply. I hugged my teddy bear tightly, clinging on it like a life preserver pulling me ashore. I'd never expected this place to be as dangerous, but a bear that explodes if you touch it, now that's insane! What is going on?

"Kazumi, are you alright?" a female voice asked, worriedly.

I turned to look up from my hunched over position and noticed Yumeji staring at me tiredly. From her very tired body language and passive look on her face, I almost thought she was being sarcastic, but in fact she was being genuine. The oneirologist seemed rattled by the loud noise, but it seemed she wasn't as perturbed as the others as she hugged her red sweater snugly.

"I uh...I'm f-fine...just a little s-startled," I mumble, trying to calm my nerves, "W-What just h-happened?"

"I'm not sure.." she stated, turning to watch the others gather around the rubble on stage, "I guess the bear was some kind of time bomb.."

"I'm just g-glad it's o-over.." I sighed, relieved by the bear's disappearance.

"Aww, that's no fun," a high pitched voice said from behind me, "It's not over until I say it's over, Kazzie dear!"

I turned around behind me and what greeted me sent me almost flying out of my seat. I saw Monotide standing behind the bar, standing a few inches in front of me, in perfect mint condition. The mossy bear's appearance flabbergasted me, I yelped and fell out of the seat and on the floor, dropping my things in the process.

"What? Surprised to see me alive?" the bear snickered, fixing himself something to drink behind the bar, "Don't be, there's plenty more of me to go around where that came from, baby."

"W-What, how?" Iena's eyes bulged out, "But you just exploded!?"

"Is he actually an unkillable entity?" Moriko questioned, "I need to take note of this for later."

"Nah, it's nothing special like that," Monotide shrugged, "I just have many more copies of myself lying around, so when one of you brats decide to get handsy like Mr. Ice Pick over there, well...you get the idea."

"Wait...does that mean you're like a copy or replica of the one we just saw?" Tora asked, nervously unsure and uneasy.

"Just great...just what we needed, more hideous sights to look at," Lev scoffed, clearly irritated by everything.

"I take offense to that claim, fruit loop, but I'll let this little transgression slide for now," Monotide glared at the fashion designer, sipping his drink, "Now before I was so rudely interrupted for a second time! I would like to present to you all your very own Monopads!"

"Monopads? What's that?" Aphrodite asked, still a bit jittery from the explosion, "Is it some kind of trendy new cellphone?"

"You're half correct there, Aphie!" Monotide nodded his head, resting his drink on the counter and snapping his paws, "Inuyari, make yourself useful and give it to them!"

"For you Monnie, anything~" the purple dog mascot reappeared from behind the backstage, suffering a few bruises and scratches bandaged with white wrap bandages, "Wait just a moment!"

We all glanced over to where Inuyari was, noticing that she lugged a cardboard box over to the main stage floor, almost dropping it in a rather lethargic manner. The dog mascot seemed to be nursing a few bruises from all the falling objects that probably landed on her as she sat back and tried reducing the swelling from the bumps on her head.

"Precious bumps of love," Inuyari drooled creepily.

"Is she okay?" Drago asked, feeling pity for the dog, "She looks worse for wear."

"She's fine, gorilla boy," Monotide snickered, "Just rub some spit on her wounds and she'll be alright in no time."

"You sound like an abusive lover," Vivienne shivered.

"Come get your Monopads, children!" Inuyari excitedly squealed, "Monnie went through all this trouble to make you these, so you better be appreciative he's helping you maggots at all!"

"Tch! Seriously…" Kimiya groaned, a clear tone of disdain lingered in his breath, "Whatever gets you two freak shows to shut up."

"How generous of you," Sakai sarcastically said, brushing back his long hair, "If what you plan to do with us comes true, what's even point of these?"

"Oh no reason, just think of them as your little e-handbooks that allow you access to certain areas in the facility!" Monotide chirped, fixing himself another drink, "No need to thank me."

"Never planned to anyways," Tora sweatdropped, heading over to the stage.

Everyone then proceeded to head over to the main stage, all of them collecting their Monopads one by one. Inuyari began handing them their respective ones as I sat there at the bar, taking this all in slowly.

To say the events of just a few minutes ago were quite shocking and weird in its own way was an understatement. I couldn't help but feel there's a reason to why this was all happening. I mean I'm still left with more questions than answers, but hopefully whatever this Killing Game Monotide was talking about, whether it be true or not, might provide some clues. It certainly doesn't seem like it brings positive news, but at least it might enlighten me as to why I and everyone else are here.

"Hey Kazzie, I got you yours!" Lou chimed in, carrying two Monopad devices in both of her hands as she skipped over to me, "Here you go!"

"Oh t-thanks Lou...you d-didn't need to do t-that," I thanked her, taking the device and examining it from all angles.

"Ah no worries!" she smiled from ear to ear almost childishly, "Come on, open it!"

"O-Oh right!" I jumped in shock, feeling her enthusiasm wake me out of my daze, "How d-do I open t-this?"

"I believe you're supposed to press the button on the bottom near the screen," Yoshikazu mentions, fiddling with his device as well, "Or at least that's what Vivienne told me to do."

"Hey! Maybe we'll finally get to know what Kazumi's talent is," Terrence stated excitedly, "Look it shows my talent on the home page!"

I turned towards the communicator and saw that his Monopads' screen lit up brightly, it showed a profile picture of his headshot, along with a few details such as his date of birth, age, weight, height and other miscellaneous things, even including his full name and talent.

"Yeah! I'm kind of curious as to what your talent is too, Kaz!" Stella said, still behind the bar and watching me with her body bent over and resting on the counter, "It says mine as well, so maybe it'll show yours?"

"A-Alright!" I said confidently, getting my hopes up as I pressed the button on the bottom of the device.

As the display lit up on the screen interface, I saw the exact same layout as the others' Monopads, except with my personal information listed instead.

I stared closely at my profile picture, noticing my messy black hair scattered all over my pale face, my hazel eyes looking sad and childlike as if I were just scolded by someone and I looked sickly pale, almost as if I was on the verge of passing out from camera exposure and light shining in my face.

"Aww you look so precious there," Tora chuckled, patting me on the back, "Looking sharp!"

"I guess s-so," I remark, a bit surprised by the sniper's complimentary remark.

"He almost looks like a girl," Aphrodite snickered, covering her mouth in amusement, "He's even got longer eyelashes than me!"

"Are you actually a girl, Kazumi?" Nomi asked stoically, appearing behind as she almost made me jump from her sudden presence.

"N-No…I'm n-not.." I reassure her, knowing my body full well as I looked into the mirror earlier in that mysterious room.

"Kazumi, there's no shame in admitting it," Iena teased, resting her hand on my other shoulder, "We won't mind."

"I'm telling you, I'm not a girl!" I insisted, blushing embarrassedly at everyone's comments.

"Could have fooled me," Sakai remarked jeeringly, kind of rich coming from him if anything.

"Guys, let just leave it at that alright," Sato jumped in, noticing my distressed and humiliated countenance, "Anyway, does it list your talent, Kaz?"

"I was j-just getting t-to that," I calmly said, scrolling through my profile stats, "Huh? W-What's this?"

I scrolled around and came across my name listed as 'Kazumi Toriyako', which meant that that was my full and real name, if this device is to be trusted and it displayed accurate information. Right underneath that, I notice a section labelled, 'Talent' and as I directed my gaze over to the right side of where my supposed talent was supposed to be, instead of an actual talent, I got something else instead. I stared at the monitor, bewildered by what I saw, resting my teddy bear on the side as I tapped on the screen, hoping that there wasn't any kind of error.

"Is something wrong, Kaz?" Yumeji asked, walking over to me and fixing her glasses on her face.

"K-Kind of…" I mention, still unsure of what I was seeing, "There's n-n-nothing listed h-here...It doesn't s-say what m-my talent is."

"Really?" Moriko raised an eyebrow, "That's bizarre, even for myself, the servant of darkness."

"What does it say instead?" Drago asked, walking over curious by this as well, "Must be some kind of mistake."

"It just l-list t-three q-question marks instead…" I present my Monopad to them, proving that there was nothing presented on screen.

"Blimey!" Takara shouted, almost surprised by this as she took a look for herself, "It be true, there's nothing there! But what does it mean, landlubber?"

"I uh...d-don't know..I've even tried r-refreshing the p-page," I worriedly said, tilting my head in confusion, "W-What does it m-mean, am I t-talentless?"

Nobody knew what to say to me as I continued looking at the screen dubiously. I tried refreshing the page about five times, it still presented me with the same information as before.

"What is the meaning of this Monotide?" Sato looked at the bear, "Does he have a talent or not, why are you messing with him?"

"Oh I'm not messing with him, Sattie," Monotide yawned, sipping his green juice cocktail, "However I can't really say much regarding that, as he needs to discover it on his own."

"Well that doesn't seem fair," Yumeji interjected, "He has amnesia, the least you could do is tell him."

"Oh would you look at the time, it seems I have better things to do than humor your dumb little questions," Monotide announced, jumping out from behind the bar, "I hope you all have a wonderful time getting acclimated to your new surroundings, it may be your last…"

"Wait for me future hubby!" Inuyari squealed, vanishing as well in pursuit of the bear.

With that, the enigmatic animatronic duo vanished like a pair of ghosts. They left no trace behind as I was left dumbfounded and confused as to what it meant. So I needed to find out if I was an Ultimate on my own. I didn't even know what entails being an Ultimate, yet he expected me to just go find out by myself, nothing makes any sense.

"Don't worry Kaz," Lou approached me with a kind smile, "I'm sure we'll find out what your talent is in no time."

"R-Really?" I asked, my teary eyes lit up as she said that.

"Who cares," Akio chimed in, walking over to us, "Does it really matter in the long run? I mean what difference does it make if he figures it out or not, smells like a wild goose chase if you ask me."

"How so?" Nomi wondered, reproaching him, "Even if he's not an Ultimate, he still deserves to know, Akio."

"I agree," Lev remarked, "Maybe then I can actually give him proper advice on how to dress like his talent."

"Would you like to help him, Akio?" Yoshikazu asked, scratching his beard, "You haven't really said much during all of this."

"Nope, I honestly couldn't give two shits," the gambler shrugged, "Talented or not, he's just like us, trapped in here like sniveling worms. Face it, there's no point in helping each other out like this."

"Eww worms, how gross!" Wayne seemed repulsed by the notion, still hugging his soiled sweater, "I just hope we don't have to eat any later on."

"Idiot," Akio sneered at the knitter, "But whatever, it's your guys' funeral, why should I drag myself down with you losers."

With that, the gambler took his Monopad and headed out of the dining room, leaving us with a very cryptic and pseudo threatening response. I still couldn't wrap my brain around why he was so abrasive towards the rest of us, did something happen to him to act like that?

"Should we go after him?" Lou asked, holding her device in her hand nervously.

"If he's not going to pitch in, he's no help to us," Sato clicked his tongue, somewhat pissed by his pessimistic words, "What we really need to do is find a way out of here."

"Uhuh, and just how do you propose we do that?" Sakai glared at the lifeguard, "It's not like one's just going to magically pop out of thin air."

"Of course, it won't be that easy," Sato stared at the hair stylist in disbelief, "But if we work together, then I'm sure we'll be able to find one in no time."

"That's all fine and good, but where do we start, darling?" Lev asked, crossing his arms and yawning, "I don't want to do gratuitous manual labor just to get my hopes crushed in the end, if you know what I mean."

"How about we take this step by step and explore this place first," Yoshikazu suggested, "If we are to find a way out, I think it's best to know that layout of the facility first."

"That seems like a smart plan," Stella agreed, wiping her glass and resting it underneath the bar counter, "I don't mind volunteering."

"I agree with that notion as well," Vivienne nodded, "However from the looks of it, from all the cameras around this place, I doubt that bear and his little accomplice would let us find one anytime soon."

"True, that is something to take note of," Iena mused over the idea.

"Whatever the fuck gets me out of here fast, I'm all for it," Kimiya grumbled, still a bit grumpy from being scolded by Torakusu.

"I'm all ready to go exploring!" Lou happily remarked, "I want to see if there are any interesting rooms to check out or new areas I haven't been to first!"

"How can you be this enthusiastic about a situation like this?" Ushio furrowed her brow at the roleplayer, "You know what, nevermind..."

"So do we at least have an idea of what it is we're doing?" Sato asked everyone, "Alright then, once we're done exploring, we'll reconverge here and present our findings, got it."

Everyone collectively agreed to the lifeguard and auctioneer's plan as they all dispersed in their own directions. Some of them chose to stay behind and rest their tired minds, while others decided to go on ahead and left through the multiple exits.

I mulled it over briefly, having some trouble processing everything that's been said so far. Is the person behind everything really going through all this trouble just get us to kill each other? What does a Killing Game even entail, aside from the bare bones explanation Monotide gave us?

After thinking about it for a few seconds, I decided to go along with the idea and left the dining room myself, hoping that whatever it was that they were planning to do, would also help me gain some memories back or at least quell the burning migraine seething in my head. I'm not sure how I can bring back my memories, but it seemed my best bet was finding out alongside these strangers I've become acquainted with

I just hope I'm making the right choice here…...

* * *

 **Danganronpa: Salty Waves & Bloody Coral**

* * *

Comet dust and moon glitter fall down to the ground as they form into little glimmers of yellow and silver stars in the sky. A person rests lazily underneath a tree, reading a book whilst imagery of dancing cows, mice playing violins surround him whilst giant metal cutlery hold hands and sing merry tunes with each other. The figure then closes the book as they leave and trip down the hill and land into a wishing well. The book is blown open by a huge gust of wind coming from an animated cloud as there are neatly cursive letters spelling the person's name: Starring: **Kazumi Toriyako**. And underneath that: **(English VA: Kyle McCarley / Japanese VA: Natsuki Hanae)**

The sparkly dust and torn out book pages fly and dance away in the wind as the white pages form into glittered sheep's wool. The sheep all prance and encircle a figure resting in the middle of the circle. The figure sleepily yawns as large blue sleep Z symbols linger in the air as a faint drowsy raindrop hits the figure's nose. The person is rudely awakened as they leave the comfort of their sheepish circle and rush back to their lab, detailing the notes of their study session. The sheep's wool and raindrops form on the therapist's glass window and form into their name. It reads: **Yumeji Motome**. And underneath that in scattered sheep's wool: **(English VA: Erika Harlacher / Japanese VA: Sakura Ayane)**

The raindrops drip into a large puddle and the entrails flow down into a large watering hole. A large horde of animals gather by said watering hole as they sip from the cool blue waters on a blistering hot sunny day in the safari jungle. The herbivorous animals such as zebras, antelopes, elephants, giraffes and other animals calmly imbibe from the oasis as a hungry predator lurks viciously watches from afar. A saber tooth lion emerges from the veiled green bushes as it pounced on an unsuspecting zebra. The animals disperse quickly as another figure appears from behind and wrestles with the lion. Instead of attacking the lion with their sharp metal blade, the hunter pins down the lion as they scratch and rub its fur, soothing the lion's voracious and bloodthirsty appetite. Some of the other animals reappear and drink from the watering hole, knowing the predator has been tamed by the figure. The animals all bow to them as above head, they form a name. It reads: **Dragomir Kita**. And underneath that in small meerkat shapes: **(English VA: Sean Schemmel / Japanese VA: Tomokazu Sugita)**

The animals flee as someone wearing a tribal costume appears from out of the bushes, scaring away the animals as the hunter chases after them. The costumed figure then takes off their tribal mask, revealing their mischievous giggling countenance, as they skip merrily around a wooden stage with cardboard cutout animals surrounding them. The figure is given tons of applause as the audience cheers at their performance, demanding an encore as the figure politely declines but thanks the audience. Disrobing from their costume, the figure leaves for backstage and heads backstage, entering a small makeshift dressing room filled with tons of costumes and props, putting on their iconic panda hoodie as they close the door behind them. The golden star on the door reads their name: **Lou Kiko**. And underneath that in pink glitter letters: **(English VA: Marieve Herington / Japanese VA: Yui Ogura)**

As the figure leaves their dressing room, a piece of bright yellow fabric gets caught in the door, with a string stripped off. The string then transitions into a soft yarny consistency as it winds into a tangled trail of yellow yarn. The yarn trail leads back to a bigger bunched up ball of yarn, as more and more colorful variations such as red, blue, orange and green fall from above and land on a figure knitting a scarf. The figure drops what they're doing, picking up each fallen ball of yarn as they all entwine them into a snare, leaving the figure twisted and stuck on the floor. The scarf they were knitting with halfway falls to the floor as some loose green knitting unwinds and spells out the figure's name. The yarn reads: **Wayne Fukumoto**. And underneath in red yarn: **(English VA: Sam Riegel / Japanese VA: Misuzu Togashi)**

The green yarn ball untangles even more as it fades into a soft grassy texture. All the colorful yarn changes into vividly, vivacious flowers all neatly trimmed and playfully blowing in the wind. The flowers are all sequestered off in their own little patches of land as a figure emerges from the green bushes. The leaves rustle as the person walks over to a bunch of white and purple flowers, tending to them delicately as a few bees and butterflies flutter past the person. The butterflies suck the sweet nectar from the each flower as the bees spread and dust flower all over each flower field. The immense accumulation of pollen makes the figure sneeze as they leave that patch of flowers and attends to the weeds in another flower patch. The pollen dust scatters and forms the person's name. It reads: **Nomi Hitomi**. And underneath into white dandelion petals: **(English VA: Clarine Harp / Japanese VA: Kotono Mitsuishi)**

The dandelion seeds then fly and play in the wind as they land on top of someone's face and hits their nose. The figure brushes off the seed as they continue their conversation with another random person. The main figure is moving their hands around, speaking sign language to the other person as the recipient is nodding their head, whilst writing something down on a piece of paper. The person then takes the notes and reads it aloud to their teacher, sounding a bit unintelligible and coarse in tone, as the teacher guides them through the learning process. As the day passes by, the student then leaves as the teacher proudly smiles and looks at the notes his student wrote on the paper. It reads their name: **Terrence Hill**. And underneath that in black ink: **(English VA: Gideon Emery / Japanese VA: Tomoyuki Higuchi)**

The figure collects all their notes as a single scrap escapes their grasp and flies away in the wind. The scrap lands on top of a table next to another figure, typing away on a computer. The figure's table is stacked with papers filled with notes and on their computer display shows them engaging in a bunch of statistical research as well as investing in the stock market. The numbers on each investment rise as they keep clicking away at their computer, typing up spreadsheets and arranging coin and electronic currency transfers and transactions. As the figure takes her fingers off the keyboard, they crack their fingers, wheel their wheelchair away from the computer monitor as it slowly turns off, with faint letters forming a name. They read: **Vivienne Morris**. And underneath that in digitized letters: **(English VA: Courtenay Taylor / Japanese VA: Risa Taneda)**

The digitized letters change into shapes and morph into an inanimate figure. The figure is a clear, crystallized image of a gorgeous swan. The swan's feathers and body are elegantly detailed as well as the water effect splashed on the sides. There's a figure shaping the swan out of ice, as the clear blue liquid drips on the floor and the person keeps bashing at the ice with delicate fingers and careful pounding. Soon the ice swan is formed, as well as a few other mini animals made from ice such as little doves and mermaids surrounding the sculpture in a giant circle. The figure wipes some sweat from their brow, only for a flying object to appear and knock into the swan, shattering it into a million icy pieces. Soon the stand holding the sculpture tips over and knocks down the other statues as they all fall apart and turn to liquid. The sculptor clearly frustrated with this, storms out of the room and slams the door shut, the leftover liquid from the ice forming their name. It reads: **Kimiya Iwasaki**. And underneath that in dripping letters: **(English VA: Matthew Mercer / Japanese VA: Takehito Koyasu)**

The water then forms into a large pool as raging ocean waters gush against large giant black rocks. The waters are rough and tumultuous as a wooden vessel braves the roaring waters and immense thunderstorm. The vessel bears a black flag with a white skull and bones emblem on the front as a bunch of nameless crew members try to maintain the main deck as water fills into the ship and threatens to sink it as a menacing kraken appears behind the ship. A figure emerges from a wooden door, lunging themselves at the ship's steering wheel and turning it to get out of danger. As the kraken slams its tentacle into the ship, some crew members jump ship as they are devoured by the sharks below. However the pirate captain is able to escape danger by a few seconds, marooning the ship's wreckage on a deserted island as they wash up on shore. The figure evades the rain and thunder as they traverse through the island carrying a map. They soon discover a large treasure chest in the middle of the island with bright golden coins, multi colored jewels and white pearls inside. The storm ceedes as their captain celebrates victory as the remaining crew take the chest, a few coins littering the pale sand as they spell a name. It reads: **Takara Hamasaki**. And in white pearls underneath that: **(English VA: Kristi Kang / Japanese VA: Sayaka Ohura)**

The coins and other jewels get picked up off the sand as the scene transitions from a dusty beach to an opulent museum and auction house. There are many artifacts and treasures from all over history and from each different culture being stored inside a large storage room. Each artifact is carried inside of a large glass case and is carried up on a large wooden stage where wealthy and affluent investors and socialites come to purchase said pieces of history. A figure stands at a wooden podium, raising a brown gavel and pounding it on a circle on the podium, calling out price numbers in a rather calm and collected tone. The charismatic figure gets multiple buyers bidding for each item as they each shout a price and a few of the artifacts get sold off to the highest bidders. As the auction comes to a close, the last item is a display of an ancient Victorian era styled doll collection worth over a million dollars, as people rush to set a bid. Amongst the shouting, the figure is able to hear all the voices as they get a bid and sell the dolls. The figure receives a check from the bidder as the check itself reads the name of the figure. It reads: **Yoshikazu Aomori**. And in black letters underneath that: **(English VA: Robbie Daymond / Japanese VA: Daisuke Ono)**

The auction ends with the figure giving the check to the museum and the buyer collecting their reward as the figure then enters a large antique shop. Inside of the shop, the figure enters a room filled with a million different dolls, all the beady white eyes stare directly at the oddly dressed figure as they open up the doll case and start to put them on a high shelf and organizing them from hair color to dress type. As that happens, a few dolls come to life, approaching the figure working on something on their desk, unknowing of the potential danger behind them. The figure continues to work on their naked doll as they insert a glass eye into each blackened out socket and attaches fake hair to their bald heads. The possessed dolls eyes glow dark red and continue to sneak up behind the figure until they accidentally knock over the jar of glass eyes and go over to pick up the remains. The dolls, once filled with a demonic presence, fell flat to the floor as the figure notices this and picks up each fallen doll, unaware of the danger lurking in the shadows. The eyeballs underneath their feet roll around and stare at the figure, forming a name of their creator. It reads: **Moriko Ishii**. And underneath that in colorful ribbons and lace: **(English VA: Amanda Winn Lee / Japanese VA: Megumi Hayashibara)**

The fake blonde hair from on top of the new doll's head falls to the ground as a bunch of it is swept up and set aside as more small strands of hair drifts to the floor as a figure is clipping and snipping someone else's hair. The figure neatly cuts a few inches of the sides of the female figure's hair as the floor is littered with stray and split dark blonde ends. After some neatening up, the figure then brushes through the person's hair and starts curling the ends loosely with a curling iron. The smile on their face is devious, but they keep a focused eye when styling the person's hair as they show them a mirror and shows them the backside of their hair. The girl's hair is styled perfectly as she thanks the stylist and hands them money. The stylist wishes the customer well, snickering to themselves as the person failed to see the mismatched colored highlights with uneven ends in their hair. The messy clumped up hair on the floor spell out the stylist's name. It reads: **Sakai Shojiro**. And underneath that in faded dark roots: **(English VA: Kira Buckland / Japanese VA: Suzuko Mimori)**

The girl who had her hair styled then arrives to a contest; specifically a beauty contest. The multiple girls competing in this pageant all look stunning in their sparkly and designer made dresses. Each girl waves to the audience, a bunch of cameras flash as each girl presents their specific talents and answers questions about how they would change the world and improve it. Some of the girls bite their lips, grit their teeth and claw at their skin, seeing the other beautiful girls all get encores and tons of applause as the room suddenly grows dark. The spotlights all focus on one sole girl, attired in a pink mermaid dress with a short slit near her left leg. Her bombastic and loud presence take the judges' vote and she's immediately crowned the winner of the pageant, without so much as a curious or critical eye glanced her way. The girls backstage start to scream and stomp their feet as the girl in pink blows kisses back at everyone, smiling brightly as she catches a bouquet of red roses. The rose petals fall to the floor as she struts backstage, forming a name. It reads: **Aphrodite Zhang**. And the stage lights underneath reads: **(English VA: Marina Lambrini Diamandis / Japanese VA: Ryoka Yuzuki)**

The contestant then walks back stage and greets another figure awaiting them. The figure is hard at work working on new outfits for the next upcoming pageants as they sew a bunch of dresses together, thread colorful string into each pattern and tighten the waists as to make all the girls look as skinny as possible, as per their request. The contestant then critiques the designer's clothing and they head back to their after party as the other person continues making tons more clothing and accessories for the young ladies. Each girl complains backstage about how their dress weren't tight enough or that their assets weren't emphasized enough as makeup and tiaras are thrown everywhere, whilst the figure dodges all the hate and criticism being hurled their way. Tired of all the drama, they turn off the sewing machine, leave the outfits half finished as they leave through the backdoor and give the girls a sarcastic wave goodbye as they leave them to eat his dust. The figure enters a limo as they brush back their long hair and some thin thread and glitter shoots out of the engine of the limo and sprinkle on the concrete pavement, ruining the girls' outfits. The residue leaves a few words reading the figure's name. It reads: **Lev Moroz**. And underneath that it reads: **(English VA: Lucien Dodge / Japanese VA: Koji Takahashi)**

The limo then arrives to what can be said is a beach like resort, where an annual competitive eating contest is being held. The theme is cherry pies, as the main figure takes their spot as the main judge, observing each contestant with a critical eye as the competition is underway. They watch as people devour and gobble up each crumb, using the water to break down the food and absorb all the fat as each contestant seems to not be giving in to the pressure of the sweltering beach heat and warm cherry pie. The main judge notices someone cheating and tossing pies to the side, confronts them and disqualifies them as the audience boos the contestant and cheers on the judge for being impartial and fair. A young man wins the competition as the figure approaches them and gives them a blue first place ribbon, sticking it to their chest. As the cheers come from the crowd, the judge leaves the competition and heads for a hot dog eating contest, with the pie crumbs and cherry goop dripping off the messy table clothes. The crumbs read the figure's name. It reads: **Iena Kaya**. And underneath that it reads in cherry goop: **(English VA: Ali Hillis / Japanese VA: Yoko Hikasa)**

The crumbs leave a faint trail as little tiny ants pick up each tiny speckle of pie crust and cherry gloop and carry it back to their sandy anthole. The sand then shows a bunch of footprints pressed into its yellowish brown hue as multiple people start gathering around a devastating sight in the distance. In the ocean, a young man is seen gasping for air and wading their hands violently in the water as they try to cling for dear life. As the crowd is paralyzed with worry and fear, a sudden figure brushes past the large crowd as they jump immediately into the watery depths. They are clad in a thin lifeguard's vest and swimming trunks, carrying an orange board and swimming over to the drowning victim. The figure reaches the man, handing him the orange board as he escorts him back to safety and back to dry land. The victim is then comatose on the sand as the figure covers their mouth with a plastic breathable bag and breathes their mouth into the victim's mouth whilst administering CPR. The victim is resuscitated as the crowd claps and cheers on the lifeguard, accepting the praise with a humble smile and big thumbs up. The figure escorts the person to their shed as the waves crash against the sand, forming the savior's name. It reads: **Sato Shizuo**. And underneath that in white seashells it reads: **(English VA: Josh Keaton / Japanese VA: Jun Fukuyama)**

The waves then wash up the words as more intense ones crash against the shoreline, as a result of the large waves approaching the beach. While it was a rather monstrous wave, everyone was amazed by the size of it, taking pictures and selfies of it as some people notice a figure in the distance of the rather large ocean wave. Far off in the middle of the ocean, a faint figure is seen, riding the wave on a floral plain white surfboard. The figure effortlessly rides the massive wave, their stance calm and poised as they keep their balance and do a bunch of flips and swerves on said wave. The surfer then disappears underneath the waves currents, touching the edges of their board as water splashes everywhere and hits the onlookers in the face. The surfer lands back on shore, holding their surfboard as they are bombarded with praise, to their chagrin, which they scorn tiredly. They disappear from the crowd, heading over to the nearby beach shack to grab something to eat, as another wave approaches the crowd, with the waves reading the surfer's name. It reads: **Ushio Isobe**. And as the sea foam settles on the shore, it reads: **(English VA: Gideon Adlon / Japanese VA: Aoi Yuuki)**

The figure heads for a seaside restaurant shack, asking for a can of lemonade. They take the can and it transitions into the middle of a training ground in the middle of the woods. The cans are lined up next to each other as its dead silent in the area, nothing disturbs the quiet, until a piercing ringing noise pervades throughout the air. A gunshot is heard as one of the cans is knocked over, soon each can is shot down in perfect sync, with the faraway gunshots emanating a smoky like scent. A figure is seen in the distance, carrying a sniper rifle in their hands as they blow away the dust from the gun and head back into a warring battlefield where they duck for cover and begin shooting bullets at the enemy from a distance. They make a few clean headshots as the gunshot residue and smoke in the air all collide with the golden bullets as the shell casings drop to the ground, forming a name. It reads: **Torakusu Chihiro**. And etched into the dirty ground reads: **(English VA: Edward Bosco / Japanese VA: Mamoru Miyano)**

As the war ends, all the men come together and celebrate at a local bar, where they all gather around as they chug down lots of drinks, specifically alcoholic drinks. A figure and a few other staff members attend to the bar, as the orders keep rushing in and the meals take longer to make. The figure keeps attending to the bar, taking each order with a meticulous yet caring attitude. Drunkards are toasting to their success as the bartender serves them all their victory meals and presents them with even more free drinks. As the figures are satiated and fed, the bartender then heads into a back room and sits down on their chair, slumped over and tired from all the business. They attend to the finances of the restaurant and calculate all the earnings as they are called back to the bar. They continue serving the customers as more and more drinks and meals are sent out, a single order paper reads a name. It reads: **Stella Belvedere**. And underneath that words are formed in ketchup and mustard on one plate, meant for the hardworking manager: **(English VA: Sarah Emi Bridcutt / Japanese VA: Mai Kadowaki)**

The drinks at the bar change from beer mugs to simple wine glasses filled with a dark red liquid that is served at a classy speakeasy. Hundreds of mysterious and rich individuals litter the halls of this seemingly perfect palace, as gambling, drinks and even personal escorts are the main monetary gain for this establishment. At one of the poker tables, lines of people are surrounding a table full of people playing a regular game of poker for a chance to earn more money than they already have. A certain figure wins each game, as the dealer disperses each card, the figure's smirk set off their opponents as they were able to read their weak poker faces and as everyone reveals their respective hands, the cunning figure reveals theirs. They clean house with a hand full of aces, everyone is stunned by this development as the figure hauls in their winnings off the table. They collect all their winnings and head off to the bank, as the cards on the table form the name of the sly individual who wiped away their competition. It reads: **Akio Ito**. And underneath each card in red hearts and black spades it reads: **(English VA: Cam Clarke / Japanese VA: Toru Okawa)**

As the gambler collects their earnings, they leave the scene as the casino gets raided, with a lot of criminals entering and robbing the place. As everyone is held up at gunpoint, a sudden ringing voice comes through the speaker, alarming the criminals as a flurry of bullets decorate the walls of the casino, glass breaking and people screaming. A drone like device enters the room from above, as it uses a blinding light and flashes all the criminals, distracting them long enough for the patrons to escape and using their hacking skills, traps the criminals inside of a large safe like room, as the police arrive. Unaware of who helped capture the criminals, a note is left in binary code. The note is decrypted and it reveals the name of the savior. It reads: **Astatine**. And underneath that in more binary code: **(English VA: Tia Ballard / Japanese VA: Yui Ishikawa)**

As the sirens blare in the distance, two mysterious animal shaped figures sneak in and pilfer the remaining items left behind. One is shaped like a monochromatic bear, stealing a bag of money whilst wearing an old fashioned gangster outfit. The other is a purple dog like figure dressed as a business casual woman, carrying a pair of pearls around their neck and shooting a gatling gun carelessly. Soon the bag of money is spilt all over the place as the two animal figures make a break for it as soon as the cops catch wind of their schemes. The money trail reveals the name of one of the thieves. It reads: **Monotide**. And in golden coins it reads underneath that: **(English VA: Brian Beacock/ Japanese VA: Tarako)**. As the two animal figures escape, the cops also notice a mess of bullets littered on the floor with words etched into the wooden ceiling above with the words of the second thief. It reads: **Inuyari**. And the shell casings all drop to the floor and read underneath that: **(English VA: Cindy Robinson / Japanese VA: Taeko Kawata)**

As the credits close it ends with this message:

 **AN ENDLESS OCEAN OF DOUBT AND MISERY.**

 **SWIMMING IN THE BOWELS OF DECEIT AND LIES.**

 **ALL THAT EFFORT SHREDDED INTO PITIFUL WASTE.**

 **IT'S A SHAME THAT GOOD INTENTIONS FALL ON DEAF EARS.**

 **GIVING INTO YOUR HUMILITY IS WORSE THAN DEATH.**

 **NEVER SUBMIT TO THE WOES OF THE FOOLISH MASSES.**

 **SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST SUITS ONLY THE STRONG**

 **BUT ARE THE WEAK TRULY DESERVING OF MORE?**

Welcome 82nd class of Hope's Peak finest initiates…...sit back and take in the view….enjoy the blissfully ignorant sounds of the ocean…...all your worries vanishing like bubbles in the air….swimming with the fishes has never seemed anymore appealing and fun…..do you wish to join them?

Hubris and folly are both intertwined…..how you shape your future…..is what ultimately matters….so why bother changing the inevitable?

 **Remaining students: 22**

* * *

 **Next time...Chapter 1: What Lies On The Surface**

* * *

 **A/N** : Hello Hello Hello everyone and a happy late Valentine's day to you all, it's so nice to see you all after such a long time. Did you miss me? I'll take that silence as a no and crawl back into my small little writing hovel XD.

Anyways, I apologize for the short little hiatus guys, I know it's not like me to miss a scheduled story update, but I have my reasons for that. For the Hope's Lie Readers, I apologize for leaving you all hanging halfway through a trial chapter, I'm deeply sorry for that. I've been mentally unwell the past few weeks and month or so and my mental state took a bit of a nosedive with my IRL life and my familial issues, that it was too much to handle. Couple that with helping my family around the place, getting home sleepy, playing my new video games to destress my brain, it was pretty hectic. I will get started on the next part of the trial as soon as I can, but given the circumstances it will be awhile before I can get all my affairs in order to make the rest of the trial happen.

I've decided to take my mind off of all the stress of planning and making the trial to work on this story and Laughable Rejects, I hope that's okay. I like working on multiple projects at once, as to not tire myself out with just one, so I hope this is alright with you guys. I'm sorry if January and December were pretty dry months in terms of content, but I hope the next few chapters I'll release make up for the dry spell.

Other than my crazy young adult problems, I hope you all are doing well and I hope you enjoyed this little chapter and the little VA Intro I made for it. If any of you have any questions or concerns with the VA choices, please let me know as soon as possible. I had fun making these intros and I hope you all enjoyed it, it was a lot easier to make since you guys helped me out a lot with getting VA's so thank you all so much for that, it means a lot to me.

What do you think of the new mascot sidekick helping Monotide, I present to you Inuyari, the updated version. She's basically Monomi, but a masochist and someone who enjoys getting beat up by Monokuma, so I hope that's alright. I'm sure you all will find her weird raunchy humor funny or pity her, either way, more fun for Monokuma OwO.

I also apologize if I have offended anyone with her dialogue or how she is represented, my intent is not to belittle anyone's experiences or make fun of anyone, I'm just writing what I think is fitting for my story and how it relates overall, so again I'm sorry if anyone took offense to it, I hope to be able to write her better in the future.

This chapter is a bit longer than the others, as I wanted to get this one done as soon as possible so I can focus more on my other two stories as well, so I hope this satisfies you all for now. I promise these stories aren't going anywhere, I fear that due to my busy schedule I might end up not having much time to make chapters, but I'll do my best, I hope that's alright.

Other than that, that's all I have to say really. I hope you all liked the chapter and I'm so glad I got this one out of the way. What do you think of how I portrayed each character, I've received a bit of criticism regarding some of them, so thank you guys for letting me know what to improve on and thanks for letting me know, I appreciate the help. I know handling a large cast seems pretty daunting, but that just means more pawns to play with and more freedom of choice mwahahahaha UwU.

I encourage you all to go check out my fourth SYOC currently accepting submissions right now, it's called Danganronpa: Remnants Of My Heart, it has a very unique premise and if you're interested in sending an OC, feel free to. The deadline for that one is quite a while away, but I encourage early submissions, so feel free to send them to me early or not, it's totally up to you guys X3.

That's all I have to say really, I hope you all have a wonderful day, night, holiday or whatever it is you're celebrating and I will see you lovely people in the next upload or whenever I decide to post next.

To all the singles out there on Valentine's, just remember that there is someone out there for everyone. I wish you all the best and here's to all the single people like me XD.

Happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alike, I love you all and thanks for supporting all of my stories. Bye Bye!


	5. Chapter 0: Cruising On By

**Editor: Lupus Overkill**

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After leaving the dining hall, I ventured out and back into the narrowly winding corridors of the mysterious aquarium. I was left with more questions than answers and from the amount of convoluted nonsense that had recently transpired in that room. It's no wonder I felt so tuckered out and clueless about everything. It truly was an enigma.

Instead of finding an exit or coming across the person who ran this facility, myself and the others came across an animatronic cartoon bear claiming to be the facilitator of this underwater labyrinthe and proclaimed themselves as some organizer of what they called a 'Killing Game'. The strange get up the bear was adorned in, mixed with the childish and inane ramblings of the animatronics made me question if I was stuck in some never ending dream or losing my sanity bit by bit.

Upon hearing that I was to be a participant in that game and the fact that I was the only one who appeared to have no memory of any events prior to this, made me question and doubt everything I've been told up to this point. Who or what are Monotide and Inuyari exactly? Why did they kidnap a group of twenty two teenagers, why that specific number? Why were we stuck in some kind of underwater facility? And who was behind all of it in the first place?

"Maybe I am going nuts," I thought sleepily, slowly losing my train of thought as I continued venturing down the long hallway, "I mean, none of this can't be real, right? It must be some kind of hallucination brought on from the amnesia or something, was it?"

I kept pondering on the idea that this was all some crazy lucid nightmare that I couldn't wake up from, aimlessly walking down the corridor and staring helplessly at the fish swimming above my head. The ocean waters calmed my frustration, quelling the invading thoughts that pierced my brain. If it weren't for the fact that I had lost my memory or the fact that I and the others have been taken hostage, then this place would have been some kind of pseudo paradise or getaway hotspot.

"This is k-kind of n-nice…" I sighed deeply, smiling weakly as I continued looking up at the fish, taking in the sights for a brief reprieve, "I wish it c-could stay like this f-forever.."

Shaking myself out of my daze, I faced forward and came across what looked to be a different long hallway; filled with a bunch of doors; each one facing the opposite directions to each other. I was slightly disoriented by how many there were, considering how small the hallway felt. It was narrow, but long.

There were about twenty two doors all together; eleven doors on one side and the same number on the other side. The doors on the left side were all wooden doors painted a mossy light aquamarine color that contrasted with the cyan tile flooring and the ones on the right side were painted a lavender violet color that complimented the cool color palette of the facility's aesthetic.

Each door was accessorized with what looked to be some kind of sticker like decal or accents that were plastered on the frames of each door and on the center of each door, there were little clear glass plaques screwed into the frame with what looked to be pixelated characters from an 8 bit game. The rather cartoonish and juvenile appearances of each of these doors suggested they were rooms made for younger children, but as I inspected the door closest to where I was, on the left side, I noticed that the pixelated figure on that door resembled someone almost scarily familiar for some reason, myself.

"W-What is t-this?" I wondered, squinting at the picture on the door, "Is t-that supposed to be m-me as a video g-g-game character?"

As I approached the door I took in the pixel characters' design, it was almost freaky how much it looked like me, almost as if it were custom made beforehand, which creeped me out even more than it already did.

It had the same unkempt raven colored hair as I did, but instead of hazel eyes there were two black dots in its place, the design also seemed to capture how sickly my skin was colored and even looked just as skinny as I was. It sported the same outfit as I did, with the same purple dress shirt, black pants, black and purple sneakers, dark grey sweater and even got the exact same accessories I was wearing like the striped bowtie, silver moon and star hair clips. Not to mention, it was wearing the same owl backpack I had and even carried a teddy bear similar to mine.

Aside from the picture, my door was also embellished with decal of black outlined stars covered in golden glitter bordered on the edges, a white and black clock face with the hands pointing to the time marked one o' clock near the top of the door, a few dark blue musical notes and a bunch of little cartoon children dancing playfully underneath as if they were enjoying themselves. If it wasn't the pixel figure that freaked me out, then the decal was ten times as foreboding, given how much it looked like some kind of entrance to a children's daycare.

"T-This is kind of f-frightening.." I cringed nervously at the impeccably minute details in the pixel characters' design, "I g-guess this is s-supposed to b-be my r-room or something.."

Unsure of how to proceed, I gripped the silver door handle with trembling fingers and anxiously turned it, pushing it open and entered inside. I felt something warm and slightly brisk brush past my face as I entered, feeling the lukewarm temperature of the room caress my skin as I walked inside further, savoring how warm it was compared to the frigid hallways outside.

 **KAZUMI'S ROOM**

I closed the door behind me, hearing a quiet click as I delved deeper into the room, hoping to salvage what little comfort this place could provide as I took in the interior design of the room itself. What I saw both dazed and intrigued me, it almost took a few seconds for my mind to process what the room was like, before describing it in complete full detail.

It was around the same size as the room I woke up in, even outfitted with the same transparent skylight view of the ocean above, as more colorful fish swam overhead inside the small dome like room. I spotted a large king size bed in the back of the room with purple embroidered blanket covers with the light brown bed frame resting against the thick layered glass that stood between me and the ocean's water pressure that would have crushed me flat immediately. There was a built in closet inside of the room, much like the one I woke up inside of, which made me wonder how it functioned given how difficult it must have been to build that underwater and how expensive it must have been. As well as that, there was also a full sized mirror on the right side of the wall, as well as a mahogany desk with built in drawers and a purple painted wooden chair with armrests tucked inside the open crevice.

However, that was only the tip of the iceberg when it came to the decor of the room, if anything the other items inside the room was what stood out the most to me aside from those insignificant additions. On the tiled floor, there was a fuzzy mat in the shape of white crescent moon with closed black eyes and a content smile on its face, almost as if it were sentient, with a soft touch to its material resting flat on the tiled floor. I saw two dark brown bookshelves on the opposite side of the room to the desk,with a bunch of books with unfamiliar titles written on the spines of each one all lined up neatly against each other in alphabetical order. There was a silver tea set resting on top of the desk; consisting of two china saucer plates, two porcelain white tea cups with embellished patterns on each one, a silver teapot with carved engravings, four stumpy legs and a curled spout, a small silver container probably filled with cream or milk alongside a small china sugar jar with a purple ribbon wrapped around the base of the containers.

That wasn't all there was to it, there was even more inside the room as I perused further. There was something hanging from the ceiling of the room, a baby mobile of sorts with some cosmic planets hanging on thin strings and angled so that it dangled loosely over head with miniature white stars in between each orbital planet. There was a dark brown grandfather clock in between the two bookshelves, with the clock hands crookedly bent; the minute hand pointing at the twelve and the hour hand twitching at the eight. I almost did a double take when I saw the clock hands twitch suddenly, almost as if it was a figment of my wild, overactive imagination. There were even stickers you'd find in children's coloring books plastered on the walls of the room with designs of pastel colored flowers, black and white music notes, cartoon characters and anthropomorphic animals dancing as well as a few packets of crayons stacked on top of the desk with some coloring books stacked on top of each one. I spotted a rainbow toy chest in another corner of the room labelled 'TOYS' in gaudy bright yellow colors with a silver metal lock on the latch.

Lastly, what made this room even more baffling was the amount of plushies and stuffed toys littered everywhere, from the floor to the ceiling. I lost track of how many toys were scattered throughout this room but if anything, it was easier to tell what they were rather than just counting them individually otherwise I'd be here all day. There were brown and white small plushies of mice resting by the sides of the clock, a few sheep and cow plushies resting on top of the bed, an orange cat and black and white cow plushie resting on top of the desk next to the tea set, a few bear plushies like the one I was holding on top of the bookshelves and a few stuffed toys of boys and girls wearing casual attire resting on the edges of the walls. To finish off how disturbing it was that I had so much childhood paraphernalia, I spotted a giant creme white and black striped bear, fashioned into the shape of a bean bag, laying in the center of the room against the front edge of the bed with a few small child sized chairs resting next to the bean bag chair as if it were some kind of reading area for toddlers.

"W-What the…" I shivered, creeped out by all the decorations, "Is t-this my room? W-Why does it look l-like a child's r-room?"

As I treaded carefully around the room, eyeing each piece of furniture as if it were going to come alive and attack me while I wasn't looking, I approached the bed, swiping my hand on its pillowy soft surface and resting my teddy bear on top of the covers to make sure it was safe. After waiting for a few seconds, nothing had happened, meaning it was safe to sleep in.

"D-Doesn't feel or l-look dangerous…" I sweated nervously, assessing what to do next, "I m-might as well l-lay down for a moment…all this w-walking is...m-making me s-s-sleepy."

Without a second thought, I plopped on the bed and instantly felt the swaddling warmth of the blanket kiss my skin delicately. I laid there, my arms nestled tightly around my teddy bear as I stared listlessly up at the transparent ceiling above. With all the ensuing chaos going on around me, it was rare moments like these that made me appreciate the small things in life, despite having no clue of where I was, why I was here or who I was. I enjoyed the calming melody of the ocean waves as my eyes closed slowly and my consciousness drifted off to sleep.

In mere minutes, I arrived in what could be perceived as a riviere of rampant thoughts. I assumed I'd achieved a moment's rest, only to be filled with the fleeting flashes of indistinguishable images of blurred figures and mysterious places. It all flew past my eyes at lightning speed, too hard to make out and too muffled to understand who was talking and who the people in the visions were. Suddenly, everything went pitch black, I felt my hand touch the ground covered in the strange slimy black substance, the entire area around me enveloped in some kind of dark energy foreign to my mind.

"Is this what having amnesia feels like?" I mumbled to myself internally, "How peculiar…"

I traversed the dark plains of the dream, hoping to find something, and out of the blue a random image flashed in my face, blinding me as I put my arm over my face to shield myself from the incandescent light. After adjusting my vision to the strange phenomena in front of me, I squinted at the image in question, nothing but a bright white light and faint noises of someone yelling could be seen and heard.

"W-What is this...w-what's going o-on?!" I started freaking out, quaking in fear as I slowly inched over to the floating image, trying to make out the voice of the person yelling loudly.

"Why….why...would you do this to me…." the faint voice sounded indistinct and was too muffled to tell if it was a man or woman's voice, "I thought….no...we were…"

Before I could listen to the rest, more black slime fell from the sky and dripped haphazardly over the white image, silencing the person's voice and filling the room to the brim with black, liquid ooze.

"N-No...w-what is this.. s-slime?" I panicked, falling on my butt from the shock, "G-Get away from m-me!"

I wanted to stand up, but my feet were planted to the ground, as the black slime lurked over to me, slowly covering my body as I started screaming for dear life. I was helpless, unable to call for help. I was alone in this nightmarish wasteland.

"S-Stop it!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, almost breaking the sound barrier, "Aaaaaaa!"

Before the ooze could finish overtaking me, I lunged forward in my sleep, opening my eyes and waking up from the ominous nightmare. I awoke in my room, sitting underneath the warm violet blanket, now permeated with my sweat and smelling awful from whatever fluids ran down the edges of the bed. I breathed rapidly, almost as if I ran a long marathon, clutching my chest and shaking like a fallen leaf. The sweat on my forehead slid down the sides of my cheeks and I felt the tightness in my chest crushing me from all the pressure and drowsiness.

"It was a-all a d-dream…" I anxiously sighed, eyeing my surroundings in my room.

"It seems that's the case," an unknown spoke in response, "You might need to change the sheets as well."

I jumped in fear, turning my head from side to side rapidly and noticing someone standing near the doorway of my bedroom. The figure leaned against the wall, their messy brown hair all ruffled in a loose bun and they sleepily yawned loudly, wrapped comfortably in their red sweater, I knew it was them almost instantly.

"Y-Yume, is t-that you?" I mumbled anxiously, still shivering like a newborn animal, "W-What are you d-doing in my r-room?"

"Well, I was just lazing around, taking in the sights when I heard someone screaming," she bluntly said, a hint of grogginess in her tone, "Your door was left ajar, I looked inside and saw you sleeping there, fighting and punching the air like a mad person."

"O-Oh….I uh.." I timidly stutter, a bit embarrassed that someone saw me in that sorry state, "I'm s-sorry for being a n-nuisance…."

"No worries, Kaz," she smiled passively at me, walking over to the me, "But you know, with you having amnesia and suffering from nightmares, might I be so bold as to suggest some dream therapy?" she sniffed the air, "And a change of underwear?"

"T-Therapy?" I tilted my head in curiosity, feeling twice as embarrassed, "W-Why do I n-need it?"

"Didn't you say that you had no recollection of anything?" she puffed one side of her cheek, "Well maybe I can be of assistance….but it's up to you, I'm not gonna force you into it or anything."

The oneirologist lazily twirled a strand of her hair, awaiting a response as I mulled it over in my head. She's a complete complete stranger offering me counsel, yet I didn't feel as anxious around her, even though we just met each other a few hours ago. Maybe it was her quiet yet firm tone of voice or the fact she was easy to talk to that made her so approachable, but it's almost as if something in my mind was telling me to say yes to her. I guess if she majored in oneirology, then easing patients into the process is part of the job I suppose.

"A-Alright...I don't s-see the harm in it.." I agreed, standing up from my bed and wiping the sweat from my drenched forehead.

"You sure?" she asked me, "I don't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you into this."

"It's f-fine, Yume," I reassured her, giving her a weak but confident smile, "I w-want to d-do this…b-but I'm g-going to c-change first..."

"I see…" she eyed me from top to bottom, her eyes trailing over my person as if she were evaluating me for something, "When you're done changing into fresh clothes, follow me to my room…"

"Y-Your room?" I paused, hearing those words, "Y-You mean...w-we're going to have a p-private session t-there?"

"Yeah….is there something wrong with that?" she walked ahead of me, a bit taken aback by my question as if it were the first time she had heard it in a long time.

"N-No...nothing like that…" I blushed, scratching my left cheek, "It's just...y-you know w-what nevermind…"

"Okay?" she shrugged her shoulders, walking out into the hallway.

As the nasty scent lingered in the air, I quickly made my way out of the bed, took off the soiled clothing and tossed the blankets and bed sheets to the side. I couldn't believe that I had done something so humiliating in front of a stranger, in front of a girl no less. I slid the clothes underneath the bed, changing into fresh new clothes and dusted myself off, pretending that nothing had happened in the first place.

As I exited my room, I closed the door behind me carefully. Yumeji and I walked past a few doors to see that her door was actually right next to mine, but on the other side of the corridor. Her door was plastered with imagery of blue sleepy notes, white fluffy sheep, black and white swirly blobs with a rainbow colored streaks painted inside each one. Her door also had a glass plaque with a pixel avatar of herself nailed onto the door as to indicate that it was her room, no questions asked. Her pixel character was kind of adorable...oh what am I saying, I just met this girl, stop it Kazumi.

"Here we are…" she lazily presented the open entrance to her room, as if trying to impress me or something, reaching the handle and turning it sluggishly, "After you, Kaz."

She opened the door and gestured for me to enter, as if she were a doctor greeting me for my monthly check up. I had to admit I had second thoughts about entering a stranger's room, let alone a girl's room, but I was too desperate for answers, and she was offering a temporary solution to my quandary, so I couldn't afford to be picky.

"T-Thank you…" I nodded, casually sauntering into her room as she followed close behind, closing the door.

 **YUMEJI'S ROOM**

My first time, at least I thought it was my first time, inside a girl's room and I couldn't stop shaking. It was as if there was some kind of innate response that paralyzed my mind with the thought that she was going to study me like some kind of lab experiment, and that I should make a quick break for it when she wasn't looking. I'd never taken into consideration the idea of being invited into a girl's room before, what was I supposed to do? Should I word my responses carefully so she doesn't assume I'm some kind of creep? A whole plethora of questions filled my head as I started mentally freaking out for no reason.

"You alright, Kaz?" she asked, noticing that I stopped in the middle of the doorway.

"Huh? Oh right!" I shook my head, snapping out of my trance, "Just t-thinking about t-thing…"

"Kay, please lie down over there," she pointed to a maroon couch in the corner of her room.

I walked over to the couch, sat down on its flat quilted cushions and took in the layout of the oneirologists' room whilst she was busy organizing something on her desk.

Her room was the same size as mine and had the same glass skylight ceiling as mine but with brown, blue and grey fishes swimming above head in the dimly lit room. Her entire room smelled like vanilla cream, or some kind of coffee related aroma as it filled the atmosphere with a sickly sweet lingering scent. There was a bed in the back of her room with dark red blankets and red and white dotted pillows resting all over her bed, as if she recently slept in it. There was a white rug on the floor in the shape of a fluffy white sheep, that I almost confused for a cloud, with a pink face and tiny pink stubbly legs and I spied a mini coffee with a few packets of coffee creamer and milk on top of a wooden brown table close to her bed.

For interior design, there were a multitude of colorful throw pillows scattered all over the floor, each one a different shade to the rest. Aside from the couch I sat on, she also had a grey chair next to the couch and a small glass coffee table with empty white mugs resting on black cloud shaped coasters in front of me. She had a few bookshelves in her room as well, except hers all looked the same with muted dark colors and long titles that I couldn't make out from where I was sitting. There was a desk on the other side of her room, where she was arranging her notes, and it seemed to be filled with stacks of more notes messily placed on top of each other, with a few heavy looking books resting on top of some of them. Like my room, I spotted some plushies on her bed, but she only had two white bunny plushies and one giant blue sheep plushie sitting next to the side of her bed.

I noticed a few black ink Rorschach tests stuck to the walls of her room, probably used to assess someone's mind and how they perceived each image. A few strange rainbow splotched blobs in the shape of brains acting as makeshift bean bag chairs in each corner of the room and a few black cushions on each one. A bunch of white fairy lights were strewn across the edges of the ceiling to give a night time aesthetic to her cozy bedroom, with a few dark pink bunny shaped night lights plugged into the outlets in each corner of the room. To complete the dreamlike motif of her room, there were strange, indescribable imagery that were present in the form of posters on the walls, some of them resembling hideous, monstrous creatures that looked like they were straight out of a horror movie and others resembling blurry images of black and white forests and ocean views that emitted a very unpleasant but oddly comforting aura.

Her room suited her to a T and even matched what her talent was. Was the person who ran this place, knowledgeable about all the students here? It can't have been just pure coincidence that they just so happened to give specifically decorated rooms to the appropriate Ultimate, it made no sense. I had a hard time believing the person in charge of everything, even Monotide and Inuyari, would provide us with living quarters like this, then again if the rooms matched how wacky the hosts were then why should I have been so surprised. I didn't know why I was fussing with the decor of Yume's room, but if helped keep my mind off those ghoulish nightmares, then any distraction is certainly welcome.

"Pardon the mess," she lazily fixed her work station, fumbling around with the paperwork on her desk, "I didn't expect that I'd have any visitors."

"O-Oh..it's alright, Y-Yume…" I shook my head, feeling slightly guilty, "I was t-the one w-who asked for t-this...it's not o-on you.."

The oneirologist acknowledged my remark, grabbing a brown clipboard, a black pen, some white paper she attached to the clipboard and began making coffee from her coffee machine, fiddling with the controls as the whirring noise spooked me a little. Judging from the copious amounts of unwashed mugs in the room, it seemed she was a fan of drinking coffee, which wasn't really a problem. If she drink so much, why was she so lethargic most of the time? Wouldn't she be the exact antithesis of it? I didn't really vex myself with the details of it.

"Want some coffee?" she offered humbly, preparing another mug in the meantime.

"N-No thank you...I uh...d-don't drink coffee…" I chuckled nervously, clearing my throat, "But t-thank you, Yume…"

"Whatever," she shrugged, brewing the first cup she made, "Now then….."

As the machine stopped, she grabbed the cup of coffee, walked over to where I was and sat on the grey chair adjacent to the couch and began sifting through some of her notes, resting her mug on the coffee table. The serious look on her face and the sleepy first impression she presented, kind of gave me very mixed feelings regarding if she was a real, legitimate therapist. I mean setting the business of "Ultimates" aside, do people like her have the credentials to actually become what they claim they are? Or is it some kind of self proclaimed title that they're just using to make themselves look better to the general public? Why am I overthinking this stuff to begin with, it doesn't even concern me at all, if what that bear said was true.

"I'd normally ask you about yourself…" she flipped through more notes on her clipboard, "But if you claimed to have lost your memory….then it would seem we should start this session halfway and get straight to the point."

It was jarring how juxtaposed her actions were. One minute she was sleeping like some kind of vagrant in the hallway, and the next she's talking to me in a calm voice and acting like my personal psychologist. I guess you couldn't judge a book by its cover, even though we just met literally hours ago. Then again there's something about the oneirologist that I couldn't quite grasp. I didn't know what it was, but I felt almost at ease around her and I had the feeling that I didn't have to worry if she was hiding any ulterior motives, it was a weird sensation I couldn't quite explain.

"W-What do you m-mean?" I asked her, hugging my teddy bear close to my chest.

"Well, typically normal procedures dictate that I ask you about your past," she twirled her pen around in her fingers, "With that recollection, I might be able to deduce the root of your nightmares, but since I've so little to work with, it's going to be difficult to pinpoint the exact cause without you having another memory flashback or potential seizure."

"Y-You mean I n-need...to r-r-regain my memories?" I mused over what she said briefly, "H-How do I d-d-do that?"

"Well, it's not something that's as easy to explain like the common cold for example," she jotted down something in her notes, "Let's imagine that someone, much like in your position, hypothetically, suffered from the same ailment as you."

"Uhuh…" I listened in closely, anticipating her answer.

"Then you'd need to have some kind of trigger, or reaction to an object," she explained, analyzing my jittery body language, "So for example, it can be anything that you hold precious or dear to you that you've cherished before you lost your memory. It's all dependent on how you interpret those memories and what you believe is precious to you. It's the same thing with people as well, but that's a whole other theory entirely."

I guess that made some sense. I'm not a psychologist or some kind of therapist like her, but it made me think back to the moment, when I grabbed this specific teddy bear and then suddenly I was able to remember my name, or what I assumed was my real name. I suppose that's what a "trigger" is, but aside from the teddy bear, I had no such luck with anything else I've touched or come into contact with, at least not that I remember.

"I uh...k-kind of had something l-like that…" I mumbled nervously, twiddling my fingers together, "Does that s-sort of c-c-count."

"I see, please elaborate," she sounded even more pleased, cutting straight to the chase.

"D-Do you r-r-remember this b-bear, right?" I presented my bear to her, "W-Well...it seems t-this bear is….p-precious to m-me..I think."

"So it triggered a response that then set off an strong emotional reaction to your hippocampus," she yawned softly, "In practice that's how it works, do you understand, Kaz?"

"I g-guess…" I nodded my head shakily, slightly dubious of her claims, "So you're s-s-saying...if I find m-m-more objects like t-this bear...I'd r-regain more of my m-m-memories?"

"In theory yes…" she sipped her coffee, blowing into it softly, "But that's up to you though...however you're very young...do you remember how old you are?"

"N-No…" I told her, not sure of my exact age, "I mean...I'm a t-teenager like most of you…at least t-that's what I think.."

"Well, I don't want to make any risky assumptions," she finished writing something down on her clipboard, "But from what I can gather...your amnesia is not due to dementia or any age related disorder," she wrote down some more notes feverishly, "Do you drink, Kazumi?"

"W-What no!?" I recoiled when she said that, almost offended she would suggest it, "I'm n-not an alcoholic…"

"Calm down...I'm just eliminating all probable causes," she sighed deeply, brushing back her fringe, "Then it seems you must have suffered some kind of trauma….unless you were hit in the back of the head, which doesn't seem to be the case, you don't have any noticeable bruises on your person."

"R-Really?" my eyes widened in astonishment, "I mean...it m-makes sense...but I'm not s-so sure w-what kind of t-trauma it w-w-would be.."

"Well, without another flashback, it'll be hard to determine whether that's the case or not," Yumeji remarked tiredly, yawning once more, "For now...let's have another session some other time...I'm a bit sleepy."

"O-Oh..alright, Yume…" I noticed her disposition, almost feeling as if I were infringing upon her allotted leisure time, "W-Well I h-hope you rest w-w-well...see y-you later, Yume."

"Thanks, Kaz," a small smile formed on her face, stretching her arms out wide and making the biggest yawn I've ever heard, "I'll let you know when I'm available next time, night!"

I waved to the oneirologist, watching her almost jump into her bed and snuggle up inside of the blanket covers as I made my exit. I quietly pulled open the door, twisted the handle carefully and slipped out of her room. As I made my way back into the hallway, I came face to face with another person, this time standing in front of me as if they were expecting me the entire time.

"Oh my~ What's this?" a voice remarked in a surprised tone, "A secret rendezvous with the sleepy scientist, how unexpected, aren't you a naughty one, Kazumi."

"H-Huh?" I turned to see who it was and came face to face with Lev, "O-Oh Lev! H-Hello...didn't see y-you there.."

"I doubt that, there's no way you can miss someone as fabulous as I," he confidently smirked, "But enough about me, what were you doing in Yumeji's room, you little minx~"

The fashion designer inched closer to me, almost sounding accusatory but in a more playful manner. What was he thinking I was doing in her room? It was a little unorthodox for a guy to be invited into a girl's room without a good reason. I just hope Lev doesn't assume the worst of me because of this, he does come off a bit flirtatious, but I guess that's just his in his nature.

"Y-Yume invite me o-over…" I meekly said, getting to the point, "F-For a t-therapy session…"

"Oh ho, so you two are now on a nickname basis," he clicked his tongue, looking at me with a somewhat disapproving countenance, "How precious, did you get to second base yet?"

"H-Huh, w-what do you m-mean?" I asked inquisitively.

"Oh, you're no fun," he pouted, brushing some of hair out of his face, "Nevermind."

The cheeky smile on his face as he said that made me think he was teasing me, however it came off more cocky if anything. From when I met him, I didn't really think much of it, but from the way the fashion designer presented himself, he exuded an aura of confidence. His high end clothing and his rather handsome looks made me almost want to re-examine my life, just from receiving eye contact from him. I shivered a little, watching as he eyed me from top to bottom, a small scowl forming on his face as he evaluated me like some kind of analyst.

"W-What are you d-doing?" I asked him, unsure of what he was doing as he bent a little closer to me to further observe my appearance.

"Your outfit….now that I look at it closer…" he trailed off, sighing disappointedly and fiddling with his light pink hair, "It's absolutely outdated and hideous, how do you walk around looking like that?"

My eyes widened after his rather curt remark. His off handed comment about the clothes I was wearing, coupled with his narrow, but intense, eyes that shot daggers at me made me feel twice as inferior compared to him. It was almost as if being in his presence instantly made anyone else in the room almost look terrible by comparison. I guess someone of his caliber was too used to living in such a high society world, if anything he seemed almost out of his element in a place like this.

"E-Excuse me?" I tilted my head in confusion, "W-What's wrong w-with it?"

"Where to even begin," he chuckled sarcastically, "Come with me darling, we absolutely need to get you measured and fitted for trendy new garments immediately!"

"W-What, h-hey!" I felt a sharp tug on my arm, "W-Where-"

"No time for pointless questions, this is a fashion emergency!" he announced dramatically, "Where have you been shopping for clothes, at the local dumpster?"

Without hesitation, the fashion designer grabbed me by the arm and dragged me down the hallway. For someone of his size, I was surprised by his somewhat tight and persistent grip. I had no idea making outfits was so time consuming and effortful on your fingers and hands, that it gave you good grip strength. After letting go of my hand for a brief moment, we stopped at a door in that same hallway and he opened it up, dragging me inside like a parent forcing their kids to go clothes shopping.

The door in question had a glass plaque with a pixel avatar of himself with a glittery and stylish clothing decal plastered on the door. The pink sewing thread and the needles intertwined with each other, with bright gaudy colored ribbon interlaced on the edges of the door frame with a bunch of cameras were printed on as well, to emulate some kind of red carpet theme. I had no idea what I was in for, but at least I didn't have to creepily ask for permission to enter his room.

 **LEV'S ROOM**

Once we entered his room, Lev immediately loosened his firm grip on my arm as we both entered his room. From the way Lev carried himself, I wouldn't be surprised if his room was decorated to suit his somewhat high standards. I guess my initial conclusion was almost on the money, as I took in his rooms' interior design.

His room was very chic, if that was the correct word to describe it. The room was carpeted, instead of cyan tiling, with a grey fur rug that felt like I was walking on a cloud with how soft the material was. At the back of the room, his bed was fashioned with silk white pillow covers and his blanket was a fake brown and yellow cheetah print with white fur tips at the ends. He had the same mahogany desk in his room except on top of his, there was a sewing machine present and plugged into the wall with metal tips used to sew clothes together with a bunch of colorful thread wheels resting near the sides of the table along with a few miscellaneous buttons of each shape and sizes and a few mini sewing kits.

There were about three black mannequins in the room, each one outfitted with a unique outfit that seemed to be handmade from the looks of it; one of them wore a pale pink dress with a medium slit on the right lower side, a tea length black and white dress with a poofy grey skirt on the second one and a golden mermaid dress with a silver and red scarf fashioned around its neck. It was almost creepy given that the mannequins themselves didn't have any eyes on them, but I guess that's what made them less creepy to look at.

On the right side of his room, there were a few metal clothing racks all lined up against the walls; one rack with men's fashion and the other women's fashion. In the middle of the room there was a small square table with large strips of red and blue fabric outstretched on the table and cut up into uneven pieces with a pair of black scissors, a yellow measuring tape and a few pins resting on top of the table. Above the clothing racks were a bunch of white shelves with men's shoes and boots resting on top of each other, all organized and color coded against each other.

To finish off his room's aesthetic, I spotted a full length three sided mirror in the left corner of the room with a circular dark blue podium in the center, I assume for when he was personally fitting people for clothes. To seal the room's clothing like decor, there were a bunch of unfinished sketches and designs littered across the walls of his room with a bunch of scrapped and overly colorful outfits on each drawn model; almost as if he was experimenting with new ideas. His room had the view of an ocean above head, but his view showed a bunch of bright angel fish all swimming in sync with each other amongst the colorful coral.

"Follow me, Kazumi," Lev directed me to the mirrors, "Make yourself useful and stand here while I take your measurements!"

"A-Alright…" I nervously said, listening to his orders as I stood on top of the podium, removing my backpack and resting my teddy bear to the side, "Is t-this going t-t-to take l-long?"

"Only if you keep squirming," Lev bluntly said, grabbing his measuring tape and beginning to measure me, "Now hold still."

With very delicate fingers, the fashion designer began wrapping the tape around my arms, legs, waist and even judging the length and how wide my neck was, wrapping the tape around my neck as well. The way he measured me was almost intense, it filled me with a sense of fear but also confidence as well. I felt like one of those celebrities getting fitted for their red carpet looks as Lev continued measuring me, tickling me in a few areas as he kept a very calm and collected face the entire time.

"That's all done," he grabbed a pencil from his ear and began recording notes on a small piece of paper, "Kazumi you should really invest in a proper diet and maybe exercise a little as well."

"I'm s-sorry, what do y-you mean?" I asked him, feeling slightly offended by his comment.

"Well look at you," he pointed his finger at me, showing me my image in the mirror as he put his hands on my shoulders, "You look dreadful, your arms are like tree branches, your face is as pale as a ghost and your stance is atrocious, you could use your free time to practice sitting up straight and extending your posture so you'll grow a few inches, if you know what I mean."

His critical yet playful words about my figure, while a bit much, were not at all unwarranted. As I stared at myself in the mirror, I observed my sickly pale physique and my noodle arms closely, almost feeling a bit uncomfortable in my own skin as I compared to myself to the fashion designer. I almost felt like the ugly friend who would stand next to someone like him and make them look ten times as better in contrast. I couldn't help but feel Lev's tough love approach was something that I should take into consideration, but from the way he phrased his words, it made me have second thoughts with how insulting it sounded. Then again it's his job to make clothes, so a hypercritical eye came with the job I suppose.

"I s-see…" I sweated nervously after hearing his analysis of my appearance, "A-Anything else?"

"Seriously, don't even get me started on your fashion sense," he continued, furrowing his brow as he manipulated a few parts of my clothes, "For starters remove this bowtie you look nerdy, unbutton your collar let those non-existent chest hairs breathe a little, get rid of that ugly sweater and gel your hair around what are you some kind of barbaric savage!?"

Lev's derisive critique of my outfit was overwhelming. He started fiddling with my clothes, grabbed some hair gel and attempted to fix my look as he claimed, swatching some gel into my hair crazily. I mean no one else seemed to have an issue with my look so far, but I guess he's the expert here, so I didn't feel it was right for me to voice my judgement on the matter.

"There we go, still a little nerdy, but that works," he gave me a thumbs up, as he turned my body to the mirror, "You could bulk up a little, but this is the best I could do on such short notice."

As soon as I laid eyes on my new look, I almost did a double take at my reflection. He removed the clips from my hair, slicked it around to look messy in a kind of rugged manner, unbuttoned my collar by a few buttons and even dusted off my pants a bit. I didn't really see much of a difference, but if it pleased him, then that's good I guess, he went through all the trouble to do it, I didn't want to rain on his parade.

"T-Thanks, Lev….I t-think it w-works.." I shrugged at my new look, afraid to reproach him for touching me without my permission, but held my breath, "I'm v-very sorry, but I t-think I should g-go…"

"I see...well then, you're probably think you're already too cool for me, so why ask for my help anyway," he sarcastically retorted, shoving my backpack and teddy bead into my hands and escorting me out of his room, "I swear the things I do for people, at least you'll look presentable for once."

Before I could muster up a word, I was out of the fashion designer's room before I could manage to open my mouth. He closed the door behind me, somewhat upset that I ruined his good mood by insisting on leaving, but I guess that's how he is. I suppose working with models and celebrities all the time has made him nitpicky or something, I didn't really see any issues with my outfit, but I guess everyone's a critic.

While I didn't mind his advice, his comments on my physical look was a bit disconcerting, is that really how other people viewed me? I mean the others assumed I was a girl when looking at my portrait, but I mean I am a boy, there's no denying that. At this point, questioning my own identity was even making me do head turns as well. It got me thinking, would my pre-amnesia self have taken that kind of criticism lightly or not? Would I have listened to the unsolicited advice from someone I didn't ask it from? I'm not too sure.

"T-There are s-so many strange people h-here…" I mumbled, fixing my hair and buttoning up my shirt, "I h-hope they a-aren't as judgemental as L-Lev.."

After fixing my appearance, I felt a distinct change in temperature in the atmosphere almost as if someone was watching me from afar or was right next to me in the sense. A chill spider walked up my spine as I looked around my surroundings, wondering if something or someone was staring at me from afar.

I then turned around and noticed someone a few feet away from me, watching me with a blank stare plastered on their face. Their shaggy blonde hair and piercing blue eyes almost made me jump from their sudden presence, as they were holding a pair of dirty shears and a hand shovel in their hands.

"O-Oh...hello N-Nomi..didn't s-see you t-there.." I relaxed my breathing, noticing the gardener watching me from nearby, adjacent to one of the doors.

She didn't respond, only looked at me awkwardly as she shoved the dirty tools inside of her black jacket and approached me quietly, not making a peep. I cautiously stepped back a few inches, feeling her presence loom over me as I watched her get closer and closer. After a while, she stopped a comfortable distance and I stood my ground.

"You look weird," she blurted out in a rather passive tone, "Did you change your look?"

"K-Kinda..Lev helped c-change my l-l-look a little.." I blushed embarrassedly, scratching my cheek nervously, "H-He said I might look d-d-decent...if I a-altered it a b-bit.."

"Huh..oh well," she shrugged indifferently, ending the conversation rather abruptly.

"Y-Yeah...hehe," I laughed awkwardly, twiddling my fingers as the hallway went dead silent, "W-What were you d-doing?"

"Gardening," she responded succinctly, "My room is full of flowers..some of them needed trimming."

"I s-see..d-do you need h-help with a-anything?" I offered my services to her, even though I might not have been much help, "I'm f-free to h-h-help."

"Sure," she nodded her head, walking over to the door she was about to enter.

"T-That was easy," I thought to myself, following her to her room.

I watched the gardener enter one of the lavender painted doors that was adorned with a lot of flowers and plant like decal. A bunch of yellow, orange, pink, blue and white flowers with oval curved petals were plastered on the wall with a few green leaves and vines all edging the border of the door frame with black thorns entwined in each crevice. It was one of the more simple yet gorgeous designs I've seen yet. To finish it off there was a pixel avatar of the gardener on a glass plaque on the door, her blonde hair contrasting with her overly dark clothing, which made her look kind of gothic in a weird way.

"I s-suppose I'll let m-myself in.." I noticed Nomi enter without inviting me inside, as I followed suit with a bit of caution, I guess she's not much of a people person like I was.

 **NOMI'S ROOM**

Considering how grand some of the rooms I've been in so far were, I didn't really expect much from Nomi's room, thinking it was a simple indoor garden, but boy was I wrong. As soon as I entered her room, I rubbed my feet against a flower shaped doormat that was covered in brown and black soiled mud stains from her black hiking boots. I wiped my feet on the mat as well, trying not to be rude if she took offense to that kind of thing as I took in the simple majesty of her room.

To say that her room was like one of those fancy mansion gardens, was an understatement in of itself. Instead of there being any type of flooring, the ground was literally that, flat light brown pathways you'd see in some nature trails with little white and grey pebbles scattered around to give it an earthy texture. The pathway itself was shaped like one of those X shaped cross sections where they all diverged into either left, right or forward lines and all converged in the center of the room which was larger than I anticipated it to be. The grass in the room was freshly cut, probably from Nomi tending to it recently and the landscaping work looked almost immaculate in exhibition.

There were little white picket fences that sequestered off four different parts of the garden room; one for common house plants, one for flowers, one for vegetables and fruits and the other for spices and herbs used in cooking. Each corner had little gates you could enter into and then view the gardens from up close with what looked to be interior sprinkler systems that peppered water droplets all over the grass and plants. The flowers themselves were radiant to say the least, with red roses, white lilies, yellow daffodils, blue violets, purple snowdrops, green gardenias, pink primrose and even orange chrysanthemums, all neatly tended to and brightly shining against the wet due on their green leaves. The vegetables and fruits were too many to count with peppers, bananas, apples, oranges, lettuce, tomatoes and all sorts of other healthy foods to choose from, it was like a herbivore's dream come true inside of here.

In the center of her room, is what astonished me the most. It was some kind of transparent glass dome with what looked to be dark green vines ensnared in the glass window frames with purple grapes scattered unevenly throughout and peaking at the top of the dome. From what I could see, that section was Nomi's bedroom area with a normal bed with green leaf printed blankets, a green pillow, a brown rug made to look like dirty soft soil, a desk with a bunch of seed packets, potted plants and gardening tools on top of the surface. The room itself looked to have some kind of air filtered A/C unit used for keeping her side cool while the outside humid for the plants. Lastly there were water taps and steel watering cans scattered in the miniature fields, supposedly in case manual work needed to be done to the plants.

"P-Pretty…" the words escaped my mouth as soon as I entered inside, "It's so..s-stunning."

"Thanks.." Nomi responded, having overheard me and appreciating the compliment with her mask moving a smidge, from smiling I assume, "Water."

"I'm f-fine thanks…" I shook my head at her offer, "I'm n-not that thirsty…"

"No, water the vegetable garden," she pointed to the right side of her room, "Especially the lettuce..."

"Oh m-my bad," I nervously laughed, rubbing the back of my head at my mistake, "I'll g-get to it..."

She didn't say anything back, but I heard a muffled chuckle come from her as she quickly went back to tending the flower garden and began cutting some weeds and stuffing them inside a compost bucket. Trying to snap myself out of that awkward daze, I opened up the small gate to the vegetable garden, acquired one of the watering cans, turned on the tap and filled it to the brim with water. I guess the gardener wasn't really a conversationalist, given her very blunt responses to certain questions. I mean I shouldn't judge, but it must be awkward for some people to talk with her, I imagine they might be the ones to talk to her in that case, not that there was anything wrong with that. From what I've seen, there are a few here who don't seem all that eager to talk to the others like I was.

I lugged the unusually heavy can of water to the patch and began watering the tomatoes and lettuce, wiping some sweat from my brow as I watched the food glisten against the water dew and against the faint artificial light peering in from above head. The flounder fish and bottom feeders could be seen swimming against the surface of the tempered glass as I turned my attention over to Nomi. It seemed she was also shearing the flowers, cutting them by the stems, removing old roots and withered weeds and even planting in new flowers as the brown dirt caked her fingernails and stained them a light brown color. The fake sunlight coming from the lights overhead, made her sweat as it glistened against her tan skin and she looked almost tired from the tasking workload.

"I'm d-done watering t-the plants.." I call out to her, resting the can on the ground, "A-Anything else?"

She wiped some sweat from her forehead, not removing the mask on her face once as she walked over to me and assessed my work. She stared at each vegetable closely, observing it as if she were judging it for some kind of gardening competition. From the few minutes it took her to see if they were ready to eat, it must have meant she knew a piece of produce was ripe just by looking at it, which was quite impressive.

"Nope...you're good to go," she stated, rising up from her knelt position.

"T-That's it?" I asked confused, somewhat invested in gardening only to be told to stop.

"Mhm.." she nodded her head, grabbing something from her jacket and presenting it to me, "Your water."

She handed me a clear plastic bottle of water filled to the brim and slightly covered in dirt. I took it from her and noticed that it was cold, despite being hidden inside of a stuffy warm jacket filled with dirty tools and utensils.

"T-Thank you, N-Nomi...I appreciate i-it.." I gave her a small, awkward smile, "I h-have to go...see y-you later.."

"No problem," she replied back, some blush formed on her cheeks as she turned away and went back to gardening, "Later, Kaz."

With that I bid the gardener farewell as I proceeded to head out of her room, watching her attend to her garden as I put the bottled water inside my backpack. Even though our conversation was cursory, I felt that I got slightly better understanding of her character, even if it was just a small period of time. I can almost relate to her not being comfortable making small talk with people, if anything it made me a bit relieved to know that I wasn't the only one in that camp.

"Eww..I got dirt in my fingers," I revolted at the sight, filing them and trying to get the dirt out of the small crevices, "I guess I k-kind of have a green thumb…"

I yawned tiredly, adjusting my bow tie and hugging my teddy bear as I made my way back to my room to go lie down. I had hoped that staying awake would help me sleep better, but I guess all I needed was something to keep me busy the entire time, who would have known.

"Hah!" a loud voice shouted out, alerting me as I almost jumped out of my shoes, "Gotcha!"

Before I could react, something large and forceful grabbed ahold of me, almost tackling me as I felt a pair of strong arms wrap themselves around my body and carry me with them. The tackler and I tumbled across the floor as I felt the crushing weight of their arms almost squeeze the life out of me. My items flew out of my hands and the person's muscular arms almost crushed me into submission once we stopped rolling around. The person rested on top of me and I lay on the cold, hard floor.

"Hey Kazumi," a deep but gruff voice thick accented voice greeted me, "Ya gotta be quicker than that if you want to survive out here!"

Trying to wriggle out of the person's grip, I opened my eyes and saw them pull my body up as I felt them carry me into their large arms, almost cradling me like a baby. Their piercing dark green eyes and rough hands felt coarse and I recognized them almost immediately.

"D-Dragomir…" I gasped out loud, feeling my eyesight slowly vanishing as I nearly passed out from the initial force, "W-What…"

"Oh, sorry bud," he laughed boisterously, letting me go from his intense iron grip, "I was just kinda in a good mood is all, sorry if I tackle hugged you a bit too tight there, haha!"

I cleared my throat, almost coughing out some saliva and mucus as I took in a few more deep breaths, maybe Lev was right about something when talking about my physical health. After trying to regain what little oxygen was circulating throughout my system, I looked up from my hunched over state and saw the zoologist looming over me with his hands on his hips and laughing happily as ever, unconcerned for my health.

"S-So...strong...couldn't...b-breathe.." I winced in pain, feeling some of my joints stiffen and crack.

"Ah, you'll be fine!" he patted me on the back with enough force to move a car, "That was one of my more generous and softer hugs!"

That was a soft hug!? Maybe to gorillas probably, he almost sent me to the emergency ward with that aggressive form of affection.

"Y-You didn't n-need...to do...that," I finally caught my breath, clutching my chest, "You c-could have h-hurt someone…"

"Oops, sorry there Kaz," he apologized, rubbing the back of his head and smiling dumbly, "I guess it was just an impulsive instinct is all, how about I make it up to ya?"

"W-What do you m-m-mean?" I asked him, afraid to approach him out of fear for my well being.

"Wanna see what my room is like?" he inquired, almost a bit too excitedly, crossing his arms almost impressed with himself.

"I uh...um…" I hesitated to say yes, I guess this was my flight instinct talking, "S-Sure….aah!"

Before I could finish my sentence, once again, my hand was tugged sharply by his muscular hand, almost crushing mine into mincemeat from the tiny yet loud finger cracks.

"It's right over here, bud!" he yelled, even though he was the one dragging me along and taking me to one of the aquamarine painted doors, "Ya won't be disappointed!"

His door had a glass plaque of his pixel avatar on the front which made him look less intimidating than in person and almost kind of like some chibi action figure you'd see from any action movie. His door frame had animal decal plastered on the front of lions, zebras, giraffes, deer, monkeys, bears, fish and even gorillas most of all. It was very safari-esque and I expected a kind of wildlife aesthetic almost similar to Nomi's outdoor garden.

Dragomir then grabbed the door handle, nearly slamming it against the glass nearby as he pulled me inside his room. A resounding thud could be heard as the fish nearby almost seemed frightened by this but kept swimming around aimlessly.

 **DRAGOMIR'S ROOM**

Once we entered his room, the zoologist let go of my hand and I fell to the ground, face planting into what can be considered a grassy field.

"Oww…" I winced in pain, rubbing my face and trying to pull myself together.

Feeling the overwhelming pain cross over my body as if someone was walking over me, I slowly raised my body up from the ground to come face to face with Dragomir and see that I was inside of his room. I was quite baffled by the sight of it all, it almost felt like I was in the outback safari itself.

The room was decorated from head to toe with a nature like vibe, much more wild compared to Nomi's room. The floors were made with artificial green grass to emulate a soft kind of rug, with a few green plants and bushes scattered throughout each corner of the room. There was a large brown and red quilted hammock hanging in the center between two artificial trees as if keeping it in place with a large white pillow in the center. There were large brown patches of fake grass where there lay stuffed animals of lions, tigers, cheetahs, zebras, elephants and even large bears that scattered throughout his room almost like something out of a taxidermist's dream, or someone else's nightmare.

There was a large black cave like structure in one corner of the room that was outfitted into the wall with closet doors, assuming that's where his clothes were and there were little meerkats, iguanas and monkey plushies resting on top. There was a very tall rock climbing mountain like structure inside his room, with a tall giraffe statue placed next to it, a small circular watering hole that was filled with actual running water coming from the pipes with a bunch of fish swimming inside of the water, probably swimming in from the ocean itself. A bunch of tall tree vines hung from the ceiling as they all swung around in the breeze carelessly, almost like actual jungle vines against a few smaller trees planted inside his room amongst tall patches of dark green fake grass.

To finish off the room's animalistic like decor, there were large fruit baskets resting on a desk in another corner of the room with tons of bananas hanging from both the trees and baskets, as well as a bunch of assorted meats and vegetables all covered by a plastic dome on top of it, as if he were going to eat it or feed it to something. The only few things I could see in his room that weren't related to zoology, was a bodybuilding set in the back corner of his room with a bunch of weights, lifting equipment and exercise machines all fashioned with animal print designs to give it a more cartoonish appeal. There was also a foul lingering odor coming from inside his room, but I was too scared to voice my opinion on that matter, out of fear it might hurt his feelings.

"W-Wow...it's l-like a zoo in h-here…" I said, awestruck by all the detail put into his rooms' overall interior design.

"Cool right?" Drago smiled confidently, almost proud of everything in here, "While I wouldn't use the term zoo, I'd call it a safari paradise!"

"Really...I'm s-s-sorry for the slipup.." I apologized to him almost immediately, afraid he might squish me again if I misspoke.

"No worries, pal," Drago smiled from ear to ear, "You need to learn to lighten up though, you seem tense."

"G-Gee I w-wonder why.." I mumbled, rubbing my back and cracking a few more joints, "Still...this r-room looks j-just like a safari j-jungle hybrid."

"Could have added a few more vines and foliage," he thought it over, commenting on the design as well, "Although in the wild you're taught survival of the fittest, so take whatever resources ya can get, ya can't afford to be picky is what I say."

"I s-see…" I nervously looked around the room some more, "W-Well I should g-get going…"

"Sure thing, Kaz," he put his hands on his hips, nodding his head, "But before ya go, take some of this beef jerky, I found."

The zoologist handed me a small packet of what looked to be sealed meat, labelled 'Extra Strength Jerky' in bright red bold letter. Unsure of what to say to him, I chose my words carefully as to not insult his gift or get on his bad side.

"T-That was..g-generous of you, Drago," I anxiously replied, pocketing the jerky in my bag.

"Ya look like you need it more than me," he commented, approaching me, "Could put more meat on your tired bones, that's for sure."

What's with everyone wanting me to bulk up all of a sudden? I mean did I really look that skinny that I needed to start eating more? I still had no idea, I just ate and I seem perfectly fine aside from the dizziness and fainting spells. Maybe that's why, I wasn't too sure.

"T-Thanks...I'll be going now," I told him, proceeding to head out with all my limbs still intact.

"Later bud," Dragomir shouted, hopping over this hammock and testing out its softness and sturdiness.

I exited the room rather swiftly, afraid that he might try and tackle me again out of nowhere before escaping and stuffed the jerky inside my backpack. I'd never been so disquieted around someone before in my life, but while he did look intimidating he didn't seem like a bad person in any shape or form. These people might have been weird, with the exception of a few, but are somewhat decent people to talk to. I just hope at least one of them are able to help me trigger a memory sooner or later.

I cracked a few more loose joints, hearing a lot of loud popping noises as I stretched higher than I've ever had before. With the way he squeezed me, I almost swore I grew a few inches, which might not seem like much, but from what I've seen the other guys in here are mostly taller than me. Honestly, me wanting to grow a few inches should have been the last thing on my mind, but at this point, given there's no exit to this place, I needed something to keep me preoccupied rather than fussing and worrying over some false hope.

"Agh!" I shouted rather loudly, "What is even going on!"

I tugged at my hair, feeling the messy locks interweave in between my fingers as I almost tore some out from frustration. Why were the animatronic duo giving us rooms in the first place? Am I overthinking everything or am I going crazy because of this amnesia? Nothing made any sense.

"Can you please keep it down," a voice remarked irritatedly, "I'm trying to work here."

I turned to my left and noticed someone in one of the rooms, watching me have a brief mental breakdown, with a confused look on their face. From their voice, I knew it was a girl, but what I also noticed was that she was sitting in the doorway, not standing, and watching me from afar. Her long messy raven hair messily rested against her shoulders and it seemed she was quite annoyed, judging from her tapping fingers on the side of the door.

"Oh V-Vivienne..h-hello there," I nervously chuckled, composing myself, "I d-didn't see you there...m-my apologies that you h-h-had to see me l-like that."

"I don't mind," she bluntly stated, "But I would really appreciate it if you would keep it down, I need to finish typing these documents."

"Y-You're working?" I asked her, walking over to her near her, "At a time l-like this?"

"Listen Kazumi, in this world, no man waits anyone and it's all about climbing the social ladder," she explained so matter of factly, "If you procrastinate and sit around doing nothing all day, then don't be surprised when you find a pink slip on your desk and next thing you know, you're begging for money off of the streets, because you didn't spend some extra free time getting overtime in."

Well that conversation went grim rather abruptly. I guess I must have really pissed her off if she's saying things like that so boldly and with a straight face too.

"Is t-that so?" I nervously replied, some sweat dripping from my forehead, "H-How about I make it up t-to you? Do you need a-any help?"

She looked at me with a blank stare, mulled it over in her head before pushing back some strands of her hair and adjusting her seating in her wheelchair.

"Normally I'd decline your offer, since I like working by myself," she continued, sighing tiredly, "But I could really use an extra set of hands with organizing and filing the rest of the paperwork, if you're interested that is?"

"S-Sure thing.." I answered back, nodding meekly as I walked over to her room.

Even though the door was open slightly, I was able to take in the design of the door frame. Just like the others, there was a chibi pixel avatar of herself on a glass plaque in the center of the door, except hers had her character sitting in a wheelchair unlike the others. Her door was decorated with decal of gold, silver and bronze coins all with different symbols on each one, from coin, Z cash, Ethereum and other forms of currency as well as lines on black graphs pointing in weird haphazard directions.

Assuming her talent referred to more than just stock market trading, then I wasn't expecting much from what her room looked like. She wheeled her chair inside, as I followed suit, letting myself in and closing the door behind us. I felt kind of bad for invading her privacy and forcing myself to help her, but if I didn't, then it would have eaten me up on the inside and I'd feel like a complete nuisance and leaving her with a bad impression and the last thing I needed was to get one someone's bad side.

 **VIVIENNE'S ROOM**

I followed the trader inside her room, hoping to make up for ruining her steady working pace and was both amazed but unsurprised by the decor inside her room. It was something like an over glorified version of any workforce business office or some over the top office cubicle.

Her bed was in the back corner of the room, with plain brown blanket covers and a creme pillow resting on her bed neatly with tucked in corners and a small metal hand railing next to the side of the low resting bed. The floor was a boring, yet lurid grey marble mesh fuzz rug that felt just like the ones you'd see in any office building ever. I spotted a small grey cubicle work area, turned wheelchair friendly, with a wide screen computer system and high tech software system, no chair present in place of her wheelchair, a light brown wall desk fashioned into the room's structure and a few small potted plants in the corner as well as a few picture frames and several manilla folders on the desk next to the computer.

There were about three large grey filing cabinets on the other side of her room, with all the drawers alphabetized and in numerical order with small little post it notes written with reminders plastered around the cabinets and on the walls of the room. There was a small desk in another corner of her room, with a rather large white printer that was currently on and printing a few sheets of paper that she was probably working on, alongside a fax machine of all things, which I assumed not a lot of people used these days, but whatever gets the job done, I suppose. There were built in shelves and drawers around her room, the shelves all containing books of every shape and size; each titled with some kind of business or trading book known to man all organized from author last name and such.

Lastly, her room had a few more desks with a bunch of stacked papers and other documents all littered on top of it, with a few colorful baskets and more post it notes plastered all over the drawers and even taped to a black flexible lamp that was left on. There was a natural light that shone inside her room from the ocean above, but her room was rather dimly lit, save for her work station which was brighter if anything. To finish off the room's office like aesthetic, there were a few posters and banners all around her room with slogans such as 'coin Price Rise!' and even 'Paper Money is out, Digital Money is in' and a few other posters I failed to mention.

Compared to the rooms I've seen already, her room was by the simplest in terms of practicality and design. Given that she's not as eccentric as some of the others in here, I found myself not as scared or worried about what she had planned for me to do. I would help her file some paperwork and she would continue working on whatever it was she was doing, this way she can get done faster and I'd not have the guilt weighing down on my shoulders.

"It's not much, but this room is decent," she pointed out, "So feel free to start when you're ready."

"O-Oh right, got it!" I responded back, startled by her initiating the conversation as she wheeled her way back to her computer station, "I'll g-get to it…"

"In case you're confused on what to do," she added, "Feel free to ask me for help, but this should be fairly simple for someone like you."

"W-What was t-that?" I misheard what she said.

"Nothing, just make sure that all the documents that start with the corresponding letter go into that section of the cabinet, so if one document's title starts with A, then put it in the A section in the filing cabinets and so forth, got it?"

"Mhm…" I nodded my head, watching her get quickly back to work as I put down my stuff and began filing the papers.

I began organizing and neatening up each document and report the best I could, as I heard the trader typing loudly against her computer's keyboard and moving almost at lightning speed. Her movements looked inhuman and she really did mean business, a bit too ambitious if you ask me. A few minutes passed, I was halfway done with filing the reports, while she seemed to keep stockpiling more and more papers into my workload as time went on. She wasn't one for small talk and I could tell she must have been a work first, play later type of person, which is something commendable, it's not everyday you meet other teens like her acting as mature or precocious like any other adult. It did feel a bit tiring after I got to the G section that my eyes started to blink a lot and the sleepiness slowly kicked in.

"Alright, I'm done," she announced, stretching her arms out and yawning, "How about you?"

I didn't respond, but stared at the immense amounts of unfiled paperwork in front of me and almost cried. I had no idea that working in an office was this stressful and tiring, I will never take those salarymen's work for granted ever again.

"H-Help…" I gasped tiredly, slumped over the table as some papers fell to the ground.

"Fine.." she sighed deeply, wheeling herself over to me and helping me finish the rest of the paperwork.

After an hour of sorting out the rest of the paperwork, Vivienne closed the W to Z filing cabinet and didn't even break a sweat. I on the other hand, was exhausted beyond relief and was starting to get double vision with how many tiny letters I had to read. I almost lost my sanity at how much this must have been for a single worker, let alone a teenager claiming to be an Ultimate.

"Are you alright?" she asked me worriedly, raising an eyebrow, "Do you need to sit down, Kazumi?"

"I'm f-fine…" I lied through my teeth, trying to look calm, "J-Just need to walk it off...I might s-sleep better a-after this.."

"Well then, I wouldn't want you stressing over this," she remarked, seeing through me like a glass window, "So I think it's time you go back to your room and take a well deserved rest."

"A-Agreed…" I said without hesitation, sauntering out of her room sleepily, "Later Viv.."

"Bye," she waved to me, wheeling herself back to her work station, probably ready for another round of paperwork overtime torture.

I left her room, feeling sluggish and dizzy, almost as if I just went on some wild carnival ride. My body felt heavier than lead and I wanted to drop to the floor like a ragdoll and sleep all my worries away. I had no idea going into the workforce was so tasking, I'd hate to imagine what a full time job like that would be like.

I wondered why each room was so specific to each Ultimate and why they almost seemed comical in nature, almost like something out of a children's book. All the people here are so individualistic and they all have very exaggerated and hyper realistic personalities to them, that it was almost like they jumped straight out of those books. Is there a reason why these people were chosen? And if so, what is their end goal?

"This place gets stranger and strange- oof!" I thought before bumping into something and feeling someone else push into me, "Oww….that sure stings.."

"Ah! What the fuck man," a grumpy male voice complained, "Oh...it's you."

I regained my composure and noticed who it was that I bumped into. Their shaggy green hair contrasted with their black shearling fur jacket.

"K-K-Kimiya!" I jumped, startled by his presence, "I'm s-s-sorry, I didn't mean t-t-to bump into y-you!"

"Tch, whatever, I don't have anytime to waste on a wimp like you," he clicked his tongue, in a rather irate manner, "I was on my way to my room, but apparently you seem to really like getting in my way."

The ice sculptor's impatience shone through his grey furrowed eyes and stern look, almost as if someone lectured him recently, probably Iena. From his shaky and grumpy tone of voice, it seemed he didn't want anything to do with anyone at the moment. He's been nothing but belligerent and hot headed since we got here, which is kind of ironic given his icy cold talent, and I wanted to keep my distance from him the best I could, but I guess it was never meant to be.

"I d-didn't mean t-to.." I meekly apologized, trying to choose my words carefully as to assuage his frustration, "I was j-just visiting the o-others is all….I'm s-sorry."

"Is that so," he crossed his arms, giving me an unimpressed scowl, "Well then, since you've apologized, would you like to come take a look at my room?"

"H-Huh?" I asked, curious and surprised by his response, "W-Why?"

"Do I need a fucking reason?" he growled, seemingly having lost any ounce of patience for my questions, "Just follow me, tool."

He then stormed off over to one of the aquamarine doors, one that had a pixelated avatar of himself on a glass plaque and was plastered with blue snowflakes, white ice cubes and silvery icy particles and water droplets covering his door. I found it fitting but also contradictory as well given his temperament. Begrudgingly, I followed the ice sculptor into his room as he let me in first, slamming the door behind him as the draft shut it closed.

 **KIMIYA'S ROOM**

As soon as I step foot into his room, I felt a sudden brisk chill envelop my body as I walked in. My sweater, for the most part, kept me warm but Kimiya's room felt as if it was currently somewhere in the arctic given how cold and chilly it was on the inside. I rubbed my shoulders, tightly hugging on anything that I could use to create friction and warmth and took in his rooms' sights. I wasn't really expecting much, but his room was by far grander than I could have imagined.

His room was almost covered in icy themed apparel and decor. There was a large A/C unit high above the room with a few fake white icicles hanging from the vent to emulate frost with some water dripping down from the tips of each spike. The floor itself was covered in what looked to be some kind of white snowy substance that was over a tiled blue floor, meant to imitate actual snow. The snow's crunchy texture and frozen state almost made his room look like some kind of winter wonderland.

There was a small area sectioned off from the icy parts of his room that seemed to be some kind of warm area used when he had to go to sleep, even equipped with a space heater in case he needed extra heat, with light blue blanket covers with green snowflakes on the pattern and a blue pillow. The bed section itself was covered by a kind of shut in window area where there was a door separating the two areas of his room into his personal space and his work space. There were large chunks of ice hidden in one of the room with a bunch of work tool such as an ice pick, hammer and nail used to shape ice sculptors as well as mini electric shaving saws. I spotted about three already finished ice sculptures inside the wintery section all decorated and standing on velvet purple cloth covered tables; one of a magnificent swan, one of a cool dragon and the other of a howling wolf, each with artificial flower wreaths underneath.

To finish off his room's winter wonderland vibe, there were small falling snow particles coming from above with some kind of machine stuck to the ceiling to emulate real snow falling to the ground. I spied a few lights hidden underneath the snow that shone different colored images of snowflakes and ice cubes. Also inside of his room were a bunch of goggles, mini chainsaws, gloves and other such tools used in ice sculpting as well as a snowman with coal eyes and buttons, a carrot nose, a red hat and a knitted scarf around its neck with two stick arms.

"S-So cold.." I rubbed my shoulders up and down, "H-How do you s-stand this?"

"Got a problem with that?" he shot me a cold glare.

"N-No, not at all….just..I d-don't imagine this w-would be much fun to sleep in." I lazily retracted what I said, in favor of awkward comedy.

"It's alright, I suppose," he calmed down, shrugging his shoulders, "But I'm so used to the cold that anything above that, irritates my senses and makes me a bit grumpy."

"R-Really?" I replied, surprised by his answer, "So you l-like the c-c-cold?"

"Like it? I fucking love it!" he announced proudly, rubbing under his nose smugly, "Not only do I prefer this, but it helps me improve as an ice sculptor."

"W-What do you m-mean?" I wondered what he meant by that.

"Apparently it takes time and patience to learn how to make these shitty sculptures," he pointed to each sculpture individually," Fuck that noise, I don't have all the time in the day to spend messing around with these, which is why I sped up the process and bashed the shit out of them!"

"O-Oh my…" I shivered, also a bit worried by his comment, "S-So you take your a-a-anger out on these s-sculptures?"

"Yes," he nodded his head, "But there are times when I get the occasional scar or knick..but it's all worth it in the end, I take pride in my work and don't you get it twisted!"

He then rubbed his hands together, watching his sculptures as I looked over to where he did. From how he described it, it seemed he had genuine talent, even if his attitude was much to be desired and left most people wary of him. It's good he's putting his anger out into something productive, I guess.

"W-Well I really d-do like them.." I quivered, my lips turning blue and shivering, "I t-think I should g-go...I feel a bit s-stuffy in here…"

"Whatever, go ahead," he turned his back to me, huffing with disappointment, "And Kazumi….thanks."

"Uhm..uh...y-you're welcome?" I nervously reciprocate the sentiment, confused by the sudden shift in mood but left his room all the same.

I entered back into the hallway, embracing the warm atmosphere and sitting slumped against the wall and sighing deeply. I'd lost track of how many rooms I've been in, but I knew that this was just the beginning of my little expedition. It felt a little invasive of me to just barge in and randomly walk into people's rooms, comment on them and then leave shortly after, but I didn't really know what else to do honestly. Yumeji said that if my past self or brain remembers something, its by touching or looking at it, the thing is, what exactly am I supposed to be looking for?

I sat there against the unusually cold glass wall separating me and the ocean, reflecting on everything I've learned so far. So I'm to participate in a Killing Game, I've no recollection of my past or who I really am, I'm not given a reason as to why I'm here and now all this talk about Ultimates, talents and gifted students invited to join some elite school's sister branch? Nothing made any sense, and I felt that I wasn't getting anywhere, the melodious ocean waves and the glubbing fish lulled me into a false sense of security and I just wanted to continue staring at it all from down here, if Astatine was to be believed and we were trapped under the sea.

"Why is it so cold in here?" I thought to myself, shivering where I sat as I felt the empty hallway silence creepily inch over to me, closer and closer.

I turned to my left and noticed one of the lavender doors wide open, with the inside shrouded in darkness and no light present inside. I felt an eerie presence wade over me as I stared into the dark abyss that was someone's room, afraid to enter out of fear something might jump out and attack me.

"You know not what lies beyond these dim corridors…" a monotone deep voice echoed throughout the awkwardness of the moment, "Are you a man or mouse in a human skin?"

Slightly confused by the cryptic words coming from inside the darkly lit room, I steeled what little courage I had, stood up from my spot, hugged my teddy bear as tight as I could and ventured inside the mysterious and unknown room. I'd forgotten to note who's room it belonged to, but as I went inside, the door slowly creaked and closed in on me, almost like something out of a horror movie.

Nervous of the glaring shadows, I swished my hands around the room, doing my best to search for a light source of any kind, when my eyes met something else in the dark room. From the corner of the room, I spotted a set of red, menacingly glowing red eyes, all with black dotted pupils staring directly at me, like some kind of monster movie.

"Is a-anyone there?" I asked, hoping to find out more of who the voice was, trembling shakily, "S-Show yourself.."

"You're either foolishly brave or bravely foolish to enter into my domain, pawn," the monotone voice contrasted with the very verbose and expressive words being used, "PURPLE MINIONS!"

"H-Huh?" I titled my head, both frightened as well as perplexed by the voice's choice in words, "W-Where are you h-h-hiding?"

"Your meek excuses and petty whining cannot deceive me you harbinger of death!" the voice, sounding female in tone screamed, "ATTACK!"

I jumped, hitting my back against the wall as I screamed rather loudly, almost at the top of my lungs from the shock of it all. I felt something tip over and crash to the floor as a bunch of footsteps and shattered glass could be heard coming from somewhere inside the room. It was a pitch black disaster and I had no idea of what I was doing and I was doubly afraid of whatever it was I bumped into.

"You fool, you've not grasped the horrors for which you have wrought," the voice turned cold and agitated.

"I'm sorry!" I yelled out, flailing my hands around the room and accidentally hitting something, which felt like the light switch.

The room lit up instantly, the dim lighting was shunned in favor of incandescent artificial light as the room was illuminated with a frenzy of color, fear and foreboding creepiness all at once. The room itself was big and outfitted with brown hardwood floors and one giant red and black striped skull rug with soulless black heart shaped eyes. There was a rather wide bed in one corner of the room with black blankets and a dark crimson red pillow, smothered with faint black makeup stains on the sheet and there was a small desk in the corner of the room as well, with the same oceanic view of the ocean, but there wasn't any light present that I could see coming from above.

The room itself was a puppet haters worst nightmare, there were lots of shelves on the walls of the room, each one a doll rested alongside each other. There were matryoshka dolls, china dolls, porcelain dolls, paper dolls and even puppets and dummies lined up along the walls. Each doll was too distinct to describe, but the most prevalent ones were of Victorian style porcelain dolls that were all wearing poofy dress and bonnets on their heads. There were creepy marionette like puppets and dolls attached to invisible string hanging from the ceiling of the room, almost as if they were possessed and floating about with their limbs all angled weirdly and their mouths left agape, almost like something you'd see in some kind of creepy haunted mansion.

On the work desk, there were a bunch of assorted goods and equipment resting on the table. There were jars filled with plastic eyeballs of every different color, fake wigs and strands of hair scattered on the floor and table, recently used bottles of colorful nail polish, used black lipstick cylinders, random strips of colorful fabric as well as ribbons and ruffles all lying on top of the desk. In the center of the desk, there was a plain white mannequin like doll resting in the center of all the mess, half finished and was probably going to give me endless nightmares when I go to bed.

There was another desk, this time littered with a bunch of sharp tools, such as scissors, scalpels, pliers and needles, all dangerously placed around the table and covered in some dark liquidy substance. There was a small sewing machine on the table as well, with a few strips of rainbow fabric left unstitched and hanging from the sides of the desk. There was a small nightstand next to the bed, in the shape of a black skull with a large notepad and a bunch of pencils with shavings scattered on the floor in an unkempt manner. Finally to top off the room's eccentrically eerie charm, there was a little vanity in the corner of the room next to the bed, with a bunch of women's makeup, from blush, lipstick, nail polish, contact lenses and even hair dye as well, meaning this was one of the girl's rooms.

"Ah...it is you, the light bearer," the deep voice sounded sullen, "So you are the one the darkness sent my way."

"O-Oh M-Moriko...t-this is your room?!" my eyes widened when I saw her appear from one of the shadier corners of her room, "I a-apologize for b-barging in…"

 **MORIKO'S ROOM**

"Never mind that," she stoically said, keeping a passive frown on her face, "You have sullied the good name of one of my faithful servants!"

The dollmaker pointed behind me and as I turned my attention to the floor, she brushed me aside and knelt down to the floor. It seems that one of the porcelain dolls that rested on one of the shelves, right eye cracked. The doll had short brown hair, pink eyes, pale skin, red plump lips, a pink and brown accented lolita dress and black heels on its feet. It seemed Moriko wasn't too pleased with this, as she picked up the shards of sharp porcelain from the floor in her hands.

"Oh n-no...M-Moriko I'm so s-sorry.." I swiftly interjected with another apology, "It w-w-was an accident!"

Without responding back, she stood up taller than me and imposing at that, stared at me with her black dead eyes covered in black tears and looked me in the eye, almost as if she were cursing me mentally.

"BANANA FLY!" she yelled out, rather suddenly at that, "You've conquered one of my loyal minions...you are more fearsome than I imagined!"

"W-What? E-Excuse me…" I frowned, even more surprised by her reaction.

"Leave this place now!" she exclaimed, almost pushing me out of her room, "I need to revitalize my lost companion, do not disturb me, light bearer!"

The dollmaker's frantic movements and upset tone, coupled with her rather monotone temperament flustered me beyond reason. Before I knew it, I was already outside of her room, with it slowly closing behind me as I heard her mutter a few incomprehensible curse words. I used this time to take in her door's design, since I forgot to notice it the first time I entered her room.

It had her pixel avatar on the glass plaque with a bunch of creepy imagery plastered on the front. It included glass eyeballs, broken skulls, pretty dresses and a bunch of creepy hairless doll heads underneath. If I'd known that that was her room, I wouldn't have been as cautious and accidentally destroyed one of her dolls. Out of everyone I've met, she by far takes the cake for being the wackiest one ever, next to Takara.

Even though she had a flair for the macabre, I didn't really find her all that intimidating or scary compared to a few others in here. I will admit I was a little loopy from the lack of sleep and the cold sensations running laps around my body as we speak, I was eager to get some sleep or at least find something else to keep my mind busy as to avoid another nightmare.

"Kazumi?" a voice called out to me, "What are you doing?"

I then came face to face with Terrence, standing there as it seemed he was casually strolling by the hallway. The communicator had a curious but gleeful expression on his face as he approached me, a concerned look soon took over his face.

"H-Hi..T-Terrence…" I nervously greeted him, a bit sleepy from all the excitement, "W-What are y-you doing out h-here?"

"I decided to take a break from assisting the others in searching this place and was on my way to my room," he explained, pushing up the sleeves of his sweater, "I'm pooped, but it was great to get to know everyone here!"

"T-That's good I g-guess…" I replied, yawning loudly in the process.

"What's on your mind, sleepyhead?" he asked me, smiling politely with puppy dog eyes, "You can tell me anything, I promise not to tell anyone else, scout's honor!"

Unlike some of the others here, Terrence didn't feel like someone who had an ulterior motive or agenda up his sleeve. He gave off this aura of positivity and hospitality that it made you want to divulge all your secrets to him, like some kind of best friend you've known since grade school. He was one of the normal ones in this motley cast of characters and I've never really socialized with many foreigners before, let alone someone from America, if his name comes from there. Then again Vivienne, Lev and Dragomir were all foreigners to, so that sounded really dumb inside my head.

"J-Just had a bad n-nightmare is a-all," I timidly mumbled out, "It's n-nothing really."

"I know, I really shouldn't pry into your business," he mused over my dilemma in his head, "But would you like to talk about it, I'm told I'm a great listener," he chuckled happily.

Should I take him up on his offer? I mean he didn't seem like a bad guy, but I couldn't help but feel doubt in his words. I mean he just wanted to talk is all, what's the harm? Then again, he's only said a few words and yet I want to take him up on his offer almost immediately, is that what it meant to be the Ultimate Communicator?

"M-Might as well…" I took him up on his offer, "L-Lead the w-way.."

"Awesome! Follow me to my room, Kaz!" Terrence said exuberantly, pumping his fist up in the air.

Unlike him, I didn't really feel as thrilled honestly speaking. I followed the communicator as he walked over to one of the aquamarine doors, probably his room from the way the door was decorated.

His door frame had the same pixel avatar on the plaque, like everyone else's and there were a bunch of white speech and thought bubbles plastered all over his door with a few colorful icons such as a blue megaphone, yellow speakerphone, red microphone, orange light bulb and purple computer monitor all with curved lines used to emulate something speaking through it like voice waves.

"After you my good man," he smiled a warm and friendly smile, accentuating the freckles on his face.

"T-Thanks," I cautiously walked into his room, feeling both uneasy but relaxed at the same time.

 **TERRENCE'S ROOM**

I ambled into his room, not sure what the two of us were going to be talking about, but not before I took in his rooms' interior design. I can't help but be almost enamored in how detailed and thematic each of these rooms were, almost as if they were tailor made for each of us.

His floor was a plain brown and black striped rug that felt scratchy but smooth when I walked on it. There was a bed with a plain light brown blanket with white pillows on his bed. There were chairs in the shape of speech bubbles with black dots on the sides of each one in one corner of the room with a glass thought bubble table in the center, almost like a coffee table. There was a desk in another corner of the room with a computer like Vivienne's, except his setup had some notes and envelopes resting on top of his desk, all neatly organized into different colorful folders labelled 'Social Media', 'Human Interaction' and 'Intrapersonal Activities' on each one. There were a few bookshelves in the corner of his room, a mix of both children's books, comics, theory books and other works of fiction. There was a small stage in the center of his room, with a microphone stand and what looked to be some kind of audience setup with fake dolls all dressed in humans' clothes, kind of like a mock public speech.

There were a few plastic cups attached by string across his room as a means to communicate from one end to the other, almost like a giant spider web above on the ceiling. There were a few colorful blobs hanging from the spider's web of threads all in the form of social media platforms. I wasn't very proficient or up to date with those kinds of things, but I saw some names of different apps such as 'Viewtube', 'Chirper', 'Clicktalk', 'LoggedOut', 'Snapgram' and even an app called 'Dissonance' which seemed to be the most prevalent app with a few anonymous texts littered all over his room of motivational quotes.

There were a few posters around his room, each one of an inspirational line from famous leaders and figures around the world and from the past, almost like something you'd see in a school classroom. Lastly his room had what looked to be a few small plushies of the same aforementioned social media apps logos as well as a few other emoticon like pillows such as bright yellow light bulbs, red hearts, yellow thumbs up and a lot of funny faced emojis in the shape of pillows.

"T-This room l-looks like one of t-those m-modern website c-companies…" I mentioned, a little too loud at that, impressed by what I saw.

"You think so?" Terrence inquired, thinking on it for a second, "I can definitely see that as well, that's a funny observation Kaz, my room is kinda like that, but unlike those places, I'm all about inspiring positivity and good feelings."

I guess that was more obvious than anything, the communicator seemed like a fun loving and almost optimistic person from first glance. Despite his very average appearance, he seemed to be one of those larger than life people who seem almost content even when in hard times, though I've yet to properly judge that for myself.

"Anyway, come on sit," he directed me towards one of the speech bubble shaped chairs, "Let's get you comfy before anything else."

"Oh r-right.." I nodded, walking over to the chair, sitting in it and feeling the memory foam conform to my posterior shape, "I'm n-not sure where to b-begin.."

"Hmm..why don't we start with when you started getting these nightmares," he suggested, sitting in one of the chairs opposite to me, "I may not be a doctor or therapist like Yumeji, but I'll try my best to help!"

At least he's eager, which seemed a little reassuring. It felt weird to be talking to a random stranger about my feelings so openly like this, especially since he's not what he said he was. I kind of just went along with it, because I didn't want to be rude to him or spurn his offer, even though he was the one who asked me.

"Well...it a-all started...umm," I mumbled, trying to find the words to describe everything, "M-Maybe around the time I got the amnesia? I'm n-not really sure, T-Terrence.."

"It's alright, Kaz, it's not your fault," he smiled at me, hoping to assuage my anxiety, "And call me Terry, all my friends do."

"A-Alright, Terry.." I stuttered, feeling slightly at ease since we're already at the level of nicknames, "I can't r-really explain it….it's r-rather weird...like it just sort of h-happened...I don't have any m-memory of anything, but—"

"But what?" he asked, inching a bit closer, leaning a bit closer, "It's fine if you don't want to talk about it, I'm not here to force you to talk."

"T-That's kind of e-easy for you t-to say…" I nervously retorted, "I d-don't even know w-what those nightmares a-are...let alone w-why I got t-them…"

The look on his face showed genuine concern and worry, he was about to say something, but refrained instead clearing his throat. He cracked his fingers and rolled down his sleeves, trying his best to gauge the situation.

"Well, I assume you're under a lot of stress right now," he surmised, stating the obvious, "I may not know much about memory loss, but I think those nightmares are based or some memories trying to resurface or something, I suppose."

"Y-You really t-think so?" I wondered, seeing some truth in his words and interested in what he had to say.

"I'm not really qualified to give advice on this," he said as he shrugged his shoulders, "but I hope it all works out for you in the end, Kaz!"

We both stood up from our chairs; I was feeling somewhat relieved that I was able to talk with someone, even if the conversation itself was very perfunctory. I suppose being a communicator like him made talking to others a cakewalk, almost as if something compelled me to go along and talk with him.

"E-Either way...I appreciate the t-talk, Terry," I thanked him, hugging my teddy bear tightly, "S-See you later…"

"You too, later Kaz, hope everything works out for you!" he cheerfully beamed a bright smile, waving to me as I left his room.

I closed the door to his room and while that conversation wasn't as enlightening, I felt somewhat relieved to have told someone. It's true what they said, sometimes confiding in others is usually a good stress reliever, even if I had no idea if I could truly trust these people or not. I mean there was no evidence proving that anyone here was really that trustworthy, even the amicable people like Terrence look nice, but who knows what they might be hiding.

"What should I do next?" I thought to myself, standing there in the hallway staring at the ceiling like an idiot, "Everything is just so overwhelming...I just want to take in the sights and forget about everything else…"

Just as I fantasized a brief getaway from whatever terrible situation I found myself in, I heard some footsteps walking nearby as I jolted myself out of my daze and pretended to be passing by. I noticed someone walking down the hallway as well and entering one of the lavender colored doors. Their coral pink hair bounced behind them in their ponytail, whilst pocketing their hands in their denim shorts.

"U-Ushio?" I whispered quietly, watching her from down the hall, "W-What is she d-doing?"

I noticed the surfer enter one of the rooms, assuming it was her room since most of the girls rooms were indicated by the lavender doors. Her door was decorated with a glass plaque of her pixel avatar on the front and there were decal of white and blue waves on the bottom with a few multi colored tropical flowers etched into the frame around the plaque.

Ushio entered the room, a bored and somewhat displeased look was plastered on her face as she went inside, closing the door behind her. I wanted to call out to her and say hello, but after the unpleasant meeting I had with her earlier, I didn't think she's in the mood to be talking with anyone else. I mean it couldn't hurt to check in on her, I could just knock and it would be fine.

I approached her door, nervously gripping my fists and leaking a river of sweat beads. I had no real reason to enter her room, nor did I have a good one other than just being curious as to what her room looked like. I don't think she'd take kindly to surprise guests either, so I think I might as well leave her alone for now. It was then that my eye caught the attention of the door creaking open.

"W-What t-this?" I looked at the door closer, noting the door wasn't fully closed, "I guess I c-could take a q-quick peek inside….w-what am I d-doing with m-my life.."

My conscience warned me not to invade her privacy, but my curiosity was eager to know what secrets lay inside her room. Was she hiding something in her room? Did she not appreciate being trapped here alongside a bunch of strangers? Am I overthinking this and just going to look like a fool when I get caught? Probably all of those things combined.

After a short moment, I steeled my nerves, knocking on her door and then slowly entering inside. I know it's almost breaking and entering, but I guess there was no harm no foul if the door was left open, wow that sounded horrible, I should erase that thought from my mind. I left the door ajar for a brief moment, taking a quick peek into the surfer's room and noticing everything inside, even without inviting myself inside.

 **USHIO'S ROOM**

The surfer's room was not what I expected, but at the same time it was rather apropos to the wacky and over the top thematic designs of each room. Despite her rather cold nature, her room was no stranger to the wild interior decor.

Her floor was stone tiled with the floor looking like something you'd see in one of those seaside restaurants with black, brown and grey stone patterns. There was a bed with orange blanket covers and lime green coral colored print on the front with a lime green pillow in the middle of her room. There was more light inside her room as I spied a few colorful fish swimming above head in the above skylight. A few stuffed plushies of sea life like starfish, angelfish, sharks, whales and especially a giant grey dolphin plushie were all lined around her room and decorated in a way that showed the various sea life. There were a few tiki like statues in the room each carved from brown wood and all with goofy looking faces; there were about five tikis in her room all with multicolored bright flower leis around their bases. A bunch of tropical flowers such as hibiscus, ginger lilies, birds of paradise and other such flowers were all decorated in tall glass vases around her room filled with clear water. A desk was in one corner of her room with a miniature sand castle building kit and a few colorful kids tools such as shovels and pale were on top of the desk and the desk itself was covered in sand.

However what made her room stand out even more was the rather fitting equipment and other clothing made for someone like her. There was a giant blue surfing wave machine with running water that gushed out from turbine jets at the back of the room, with the floor wet from the after splash. A few black and grey wetsuits were hung up on a wooden clothing pole and there were about three of them with a few white surfboards all with tropical designs on the front and undersides next to the wetsuits on the left side of the wave machine. To finish of her room's interior design, there was a small bookshelf with what looked to be animal picture books of aquatic life resting on the shelves, a few posters of cute animals with funny lines underneath such as 'Just keep swimming' and other such iconic lines and on the roof of her room, there was a fluorescent light machine that shone changing rainbow lights around the room, giving it a kind of Hawaiian late night party vibe.

Her room was a mini island resort, except it looked more like one of those extravagant first class cabins if anything. I did find it a bit odd for her to have so many plushies and floral decorations, from the way she comes off, I never would have assumed she was the nature lover type. I peered further into her room and I heard crashing waves coming from the wave machine inside her room. It seemed that she was practicing her surfing, wearing a grey wetsuit and balancing on a white and pink surfboard. The roaring waves crashed against each other, the azure waves splashed on the wet mat placed underneath the machine and Ushio had a small smile on her face, almost as if she were at peace. I couldn't help but want to say hello to her, but I didn't want to interrupt her brief moment of joy.

"Whatcha doing there Kazumi," a voice called out to me from behind.

I paused, feeling a cold chill run down my spine as I turned around slowly to see someone standing behind me. My skin turned ghostly white and my lips quivered nervously as I was caught red handed spying on someone. It was none other than Torakusu, standing there, eyeing me with a cocky smile on his face.

"O-Oh T-T-Tora!" I jumped, slamming Ushio's door shut, "It's n-not what it l-looks like!"

"Oh? Because to me, it looks like you wanted to experience the sweet delight in observing a gorgeous maiden in her natural habitat!" he chuckled, confidently standing proud and brushing back his violet hair, "I see we are both kindred souls indeed!"

Both confused and shell shocked by the sniper's sudden presence, I heard some footsteps closing in on our location. The door slamming must have alerted the surfer to someone being close by and watching her.

"Who's there?" Ushio asked nervously, the pitter patter of water droplets were heard on the floor.

"W-What..oh n-no.." I started mentally panicking to myself.

"Come with me!" Tora grabbed my arm, yanking my body across the hall as we rushed into one of the bedrooms.

"W-What a-are you?" I questioned his motives, my arm almost dislocating from the intense pressure, "W-Where?"

"No time for questions," he shushed me, opening the door to the room, "Unless you want your eyes gouged out by that pretty girl's fury, I suggest you come with me!"

His bold and rather exaggerated statement confused me even more as it seemed he took me over to one of the rooms that I've yet to explore. I took a quick gander at his room, as his hand touched the door knob. His door had a pixel avatar of himself like the others and on the decal of his door were a bunch of guns and rifles on the front with a purple and white camo covering the entire door frame.

"H-Hey!" he pulled me into his room, closing the door behind us.

"Phew, that was a close one!" he breathed heavily, winking at me, "No need to thank me, as a fellow ladies man, we gotta stick out for each other in this warzone of life!"

"E-Excuse….m-me.." I gasped audibly, breathing heavily as well, "I d-don't.."

"No need to thank me, Kazumi," he patted me on the back, smiling dumbly, "Please come in, you must be exhausted."

"O-Oh...uhm, uh.." I mumbled, feeling overwhelmed by the rush of emotions surging through my mind.

I didn't know what to think nor did I have the time to process my surroundings, as the sniper invited me into his room. I never expected a visit like this to happen so suddenly, but in the sense it was killing two birds with one stone. I didn't know what to expect inside his room, was it going to be as gaudy or extreme in terms of design as the rest? I wasn't too sure, his room is probably filled with all sorts of army surplus items or something.

 **TORAKUSU'S ROOM**

What I expected to see inside his room and the reality of it all collided like an avalanche. Instead of expecting some kind of crazy set up with a whole bunch of guns or military training gear, Torakusu's room was by far the simplest room I've seen, probably topping Vivienne's room in that department.

His bed was in one corner of the room with a plain black blanket neatly tucked into the corners of his bed frame with a white pillow resting on top. There was a small bookshelf with not nearly as many book as the other rooms. The shelf was next to a simple brown desk with a notepad, a few pens and other such stationery on top of the table. There was a circular camo green and black rug on his floor over the plain cyan tiled floors and everything in his room was clean and in an orderly fashion.

There wasn't really much else inside his room aside from the essentials, but the one thing that did stick out the most was the fact that in an empty corner of the room were a bunch of black rifles all holstered on a wooden gun rack in the corner of the room away from his living space. I had clue of each gun's name nor did I know if they were all the same, but they all looked the same and there was a small metal suitcase resting at the side of the rack with a coded lock on the front. Lastly there was a plain yellow training dummy with a few bullet holes and gunpowder burned into its foam skin.

I was shocked, I didn't expect someone as wild and dramatic as Torakusu to have such simple interior design. Assuming his sniper status meant much and if he was a real gunman, then that must mean he had military experience and was probably still locked in the ways of living like a soldier. It would make the most sense as to why he didn't sport any posters, eccentric decorations or a toy.

"Surprised to see that my personal kingdom isn't as fancy as the rest?" the sniper interjected, interrupting my train of thought, "I get that a lot, heh."

"K-Kind of.." I nervously scratched my cheek, blushing beet red, "I half e-expected you'd h-have an a-armory in here or s-something..hehe…"

"I get that a lot," he chuckled embarrassedly, rubbing the back of his head, "I think it's easier living with less distractions in my life, living in the military's taught me a lot about sustainability and pragmatism."

"H-How so?" I asked him, "W-What do you m-mean, Tora?"

"It's nothing really," he brushed it off, resuming his cheerful demeanor, "So did you get a good eyeful of the surfing goddess herself?"

For an ephemeral second, I thought I saw him twitch when I asked him about his room. His hands were slightly jittery, but I guess that was from the running we did earlier or something. He kept an eager smile on his face, as he awaited the details like an impatient child at a candy store.

"W-What no!" I shook my head, waving my hands in front of me anxiously, "I uh...j-just wanted to s-say hello...w-we kind of..g-got off on the wrong foot…"

"I see.." he paused, trailing off for a brief second, "Did you at least see what color underwear she was wearing though?" he crossed his fingers and closed his eyes, hoping that I did.

"Tora…" I eyed him with an unimpressed glare, a smug smile plastered on his face as he was giggling to himself, "N-No…"

"Darn, what a shame," he shrugged it off, not as upset as I thought he'd be, "Next time you want to rendezvous with a cutie, be sure to give me all the details! If we are to venture this academy as the brazen and lecherous young men we are, then we must find the ultimate man's fantasy!"

"U-Uh…" I sweated nervously, slightly disturbed by his eccentric behavior.

"Never fear, Kazumi!" he approached me, standing up straight and putting his hand on my shoulder, "You'll know what I mean later, you can trust me on that!"

A smile gleaned across his face as ruffled my hair, almost like some kind of perverted older brother. I never pegged him as someone who'd say stuff like that. With the way he was flirting with the other girls, I'd assume he was more of classy old fashioned romantic, I guess my initial assumption about him was wrong.

"T-Thanks...I g-guess," fixing my messy hair around after he messed it up, "I uh..h-have to go now..I will s-s-see you later, T-Tora."

"So soon, b-but I wanted to teach you the thrill of piercing that bullet of love into a young maiden's heart!" he gestured with his hand out and his eyes glinting with desire, "Oh well, we can do this next time, later, Kazumi!"

I bade the sniper goodbye as I closed his door slowly, hearing a loud noise come from inside. It sounded like something fell over but from the outside I could barely hear anything, meaning the rooms are probably soundproof. He must have been practicing his aim or something on the test dummy or something, he didn't seem all that interested in shooting guns, but I guess he needed something to do in the meantime.

"Heya Kazzie," a female voice chimed into my thoughts, "Whatcha doing?"

I turn to my right and saw Lou standing there, watching me with an amused smile on her face. The roleplayer hopped up and down, balancing on the heels of her feet as she stared directly at me, with an almost childlike curiosity in her eyes.

"H-Hey Lou...I uh…" I anxiously mumbled, trying to come up with an excuse as to what I was doing, "Just l-looking around...t-t-taking in the sights."

"Hehehe, silly Kazzie," she snickered, raising her hand to her mouth covering her enthusiasm, "You're such a bad liar, I saw you enter and exit the other rooms."

"O-Oh..I.." I stuttered, dumbfounded but not shocked she saw through my obvious white lie, "It's n-not what it l-looks like.."

"Don't worry silly," she giggled, playing with her black and white sleeves, "I'm not going to tell anyone anything, cross my heart and hope to die."

She then mimed the crossing her heart gesture, saying such playful words in a very calm and casual manner. I wasn't sure how someone like her was handling this situation so remarkably well, but I guess everyone deals with conflict and grief in their own ways. Maybe her childish persona is a cover for how she really feels, it's almost too hard to tell if anything, she didn't seem jittery or nervous and nothing about her body language suggested otherwise. I guess being a roleplayer required her to be a good actor as well as be composed. Then again I barely knew her, so it's up in the air for me at the moment.

"While you're at it, wanna come see my room?" she asked me, playing with her panda hood.

"H-Huh? W-Where is this c-c-coming from?" I inquired, confused by her sudden interest in inviting me over to her room.

"Does there need to be a reason?" she tilted her head, "Can't I just invite you over as a friend? I'm not forcing you to do anything, you dorky pants."

Asinine nicknaming aside, I kind of wanted to see her room honestly speaking. I was already perusing each and every nook and cranny of this facility, and the chance that some rooms might have some secrets might also be plausible. However my mind was too frazzled to really think of escaping, instead I simply nodded my head to her request.

"Yay! Right this way, Kazzie~" she merrily clapped her hands together, skipping on ahead to one of the lavender doors, "You'll be the first one I ever show what it looks like to!"

"R-Really?" I wondered, slightly doubting that claim, but shrugging it off as a friendly notion of excitement on her part, "I f-feel kind of h-honored..h-heh."

She led me to a door that had a glass plaque of a pixel avatar of herself on the top with a black and white director's board and a the happy and sad masks you see in theaters on the bottom half of the frame with a bunch of colorful ribbon laced around the edges of her door. I wasn't totally sure if roleplaying was all that similar to acting, but I guess this visit was going to be a bit of an eye opener to me. As Lou opened up the door to her room, we both entered inside as she closed the door behind us.

 **LOU'S ROOM**

I didn't really know what to expect inside of Lou's room other than some kind of elaborate theater set up, but what I saw was both what I expected and somewhat more apropos to her style. I found the room almost similar to mine in terms of cuteness and the amount of adorable designs scattered everywhere.

Her bed was in the left corner of the room with a pink blanket and panda face etched on the fabric with a few pastel colored pillows as well as a giant panda plushie resting on top of her bed. There was a mini stage in the back middle of her room with velvet red curtains parted to the sides and a few miscellaneous props resting on the stage itself including a bunch of chairs, a few mock dummies as well as set pieces of fake trees and bushes could be seen as well.

The room also had a very fairytale aesthetic to it, with a few posters and decorations reminiscent to that of fables and other noteworthy stories, such as Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Red Riding Hood, Hansel & Gretel and a bunch of other stories. In another corner of the room there was a desk in the center of two bookshelves, with some prominent children's books as well as fairytales lodged in between each other on each shelf with a bunch of animal stuffed plushies resting on the top of the shelves wearing pretty outfits with tons of ribbons and lace. On top of the desk were a bunch of dolls almost like Darbie dolls with a bunch of blonde haired girls wearing the flashiest and most bedazzled outfits ever made, standing in weird poses and acting as if they were talking to each other.

There was a giant panda shaped rug resting on the floor of her room and there seemed to be a few more animal plushies scattered everywhere, almost the same amount as in my room. There were a bunch of candy machines inside her room as well such as a giant red gumball machine, a few racks of lollipops all color coded in each flavor and a few cookies all stacked up on top of each other in an organized manner on top of a creme white covered table in another corner of her room. To finish off her room's design I spotted a few video game posters in her room; specifically RPG game posters of games such as Penultimate Paradise, Dominion Minds and even famous indie anime centric games more specifically of the horror genre like Demons of Life and Overstory.

"Isn't it cool?" Lou asked, skipping merrily ahead of me as she presented me her room's layout.

"W-Wow...it's very…" I tried forming the right words to describe her room, "Dramatic."

"Thanks!" she smiled from ear to ear, playing with her pigtailed hair, "Have you ever wanted to try roleplaying, Kazumi?"

"N-Not really…" I replied, a bit worried I might offend her, "I've n-never done it b-before...at least I t-think I h-haven't.."

"It's really simple actually," she twirled around and headed towards the stage, "It's basically acting without a set script, or improvisation as they call it. You make up a scenario and whatever happens you have to find a clever way of continuing the conversation and thus in turn making the story more interesting."

"Huh..s-seems easy-enough," I mused over the basics of roleplaying, "So y-you want me to improvise a s-scene and y-you'll c-come up with a w-way to finish it?"

"Pretty much, ten points for your Kazzie!" she jumped on stage happily, almost proud of me for grasping the basic concept, "You can start us off and then I'll continue it."

To be honest, I didn't really think of myself as a creative thinker nor was I someone who had much prowess in creating a story. I could have been someone like that before I got amnesia, but that's just all hypothetical at this point. I might as well go along with her, she seemed to be into the idea and I didn't want to be rude when she invited me into her room so forthcomingly.

"Umm..I…" I wasn't sure of what setting this should take place in, but I just used the first thing that popped into my head, "It's late at night, I'm at the dinner table, eating alone and staring outside at the rainstorm, waiting for it to subside."

"You hear a knock at your front door," she said, almost as if it were a second hand reflex for her, "Is anyone home?" she pretended to knock on the wood of the stage.

Amazed by her sudden acting presence, I continued the roleplay, "I walk o-over to the door, o-o-open the door and what d-do I see?"

"It's your childhood best friend, coming over to make sure you're alright," she thought it over, acting out the greeting, "How are you doing? Eating alone again as usual?"

She chuckled when making that statement, as I felt slightly disappointed in my character's status. I was getting into the groove of the story, but I had no idea where it would lead me to.

"I g-guess so...it's s-stormy outside, p-please come inside," I gestured, allowing her entry into my made up house, "M-Mind the step."

"Thank you, I brought over some drinks," she cheerfully responded, blushing at the idea of being invited inside, "I'll set it up."

"I f-follow soon a-after...watching y-you organize the d-drinks," I continued, "I resume e-eating my m-meal…"

"So how was your day?" she asked me, probably asking about my character's day, "I heard you're planning to ask your girlfriend to marry her?" she then motions handing me the drink she poured.

Well that took a sudden turn. I never expected to have already gotten a girlfriend, let alone thought of marrying her. I felt intune with my character and it was almost exciting to act like someone else.

"Y-Yeah...it's b-been five y-years, since w-we got together.." I blushed nervously, admitting my fake feelings for my imaginary girlfriend, "I can't b-believe it.."

"Well, how about a toast," she imitated holding a drink as I did the same, "Long live your unconditional love!"

I pretended to drink the air as I fake gulped a drink. I now saw why she liked roleplaying, it was incredibly fun to pretend to be someone else and I felt a bit more confident in myself for the first time since waking up here.

"It was poisoned."

"W-What?" I asked with a confused stare, looking at Lou as she said those three words so normally as if they didn't have any bad implications, "H-How?"

"I snuck it into your cup, while you were eating dinner," she snickered, her eyes squinted and her smile smug and confident as she said it, "That's for not reciprocating my love back in high school!"

"O-Oh…" I gasped, a bit surprised by this sudden twist ending, "W-Why me?!"

"Because you...were the last words you heard before passing out," the roleplayer dramatically said, "And scene! Well what did you think?"

Honestly I wasn't sure what to think in that moment. It was so liberating to play as someone else, despite my stuttery and jittery body language, but at the same time I felt the pain of my character's death almost hit home for me. Is this what roleplaying is like?

"That was so much fun," she ecstatically chimed in, "I didn't know you were good at this, Kazzie."

"I uh...not really...j-just going with t-the flow I g-guess…" I scratched my cheek embarrassedly.

Before she could respond back, a knock was heard coming from outside her room. The roleplayer walked off the stage and proceeded to answer the door as someone barged right inside her room, almost a bit too hastily might I add. Their golden hazel eyes and blonde hair stood out the most as they tumbled inside Lou's room and almost knocked down one of the chairs on the ground.

"W-Wayne?" I said aloud, noticing him almost trip over his footing as he stuck the landing midway.

"Hiya Kaz!" his chipper voice rang throughout my ears, "Didn't expect to see you here, but no matter, I made you this!"

As he dusted off his clothing, the knitter handed me a small little pale blue bag, almost like a pouch. It was beautifully handmade with the blue stitching woven neatly into each crevice, a purple string attached to the open top end and used to close the bag when needed and there was a cute brown teddy bear etched on the front of the small pouch.

"T-Thanks, w-what's this f-for anyway?" I asked, questioning his sudden generosity.

"Consider it a gift for one of my new friends!" he gleamed a toothy grin, "I've even made one for Lou over here, here you go!"

"Thanks Wayne~" she smiled as well, receiving a small black and white pouch with a pink panda face on the front, "I'll cherish it forever!"

"No problem," he proudly puffed up his chest, "Hey Kaz, wanna come check out what else I made in my room?"

"Uhh..sure?" I hesitantly agreed to his sudden request.

"Awesomeness! Follow me!" he zoomed out of her room.

"Well I'll s-see you later, Lou," I bade her goodbye, "T-That was a f-fun roleplay…"

"Anytime Kazzie, toodles!" she waved to me, hopping back on stage as I exited her room in pursuit of the energetic knitter.

I closed the door behind me, searching around the hallway for where he had vanished to and searched on the guys' rooms side of the hall. I noticed a few familiar ones I'd seen already until I came across what I assumed to be Wayne's room. His door had the same plaque of himself as a pixel avatar on the front with a bunch of colorful tangled yarn with knitting needles and woven goods present on the front in a decal like fashion, with knitted sweaters, mittens and even scarfs plastered on the door.

"There you are!" a voice called out to me, before I could open his door, "What took you so long?"

I saw the knitter slam open the door to his room, almost hitting me in the face as he seemed a bit too hyper if anything. He broke a small sweat, but he didn't seem all that tired, but more exuberant and lively to having someone visit him.

"Y-You ran a-a-ahead of me.." I pointed it out to him, "I didn't w-want to be r-rude…"

"It's fine! Come on in, goofball!" he chuckled happily, opening the door for me as I made my way inside, "Welcome to my humble temporary abode!"

 **WAYNE'S ROOM**

Given his very enthusiastic and often over the top behavior, I expected the knitter's room to match his energetic and happy go lucky mindset. I guess my predictions were right on the money this time, it's come to be expected that most of the rooms, bar a few, were as extraordinary as the room's owner.

The floors were covered in a finely Indian woven style rug that made his room look even more exotic compared to the others, with the scent of fibers wafting in the air. There was a bed in the corner of his room with an old fashioned quilt with a bunch of child like drawings you'd see a toddler have for a blanket with a set of striped pillows. There were a few large orange creme sofa like chairs in his room as pillows with knitted cases over each one and resting on each chair. There was a wooden table in the center of the chairs, with a basket full of multicolored yarn and string resting inside with some entrails and loose yarn resting on the floor almost as if he was knitting something recently. On top of his desk were a bunch of knitting needles with some unfinished knitted goods such as gaudy looking sweaters, frilled scarfs and even fingerless mittens resting on top and messily strewn all over each other, with the patterns confused in the mess.

I spotted a few crochet goods as well, some even decorating his room against the walls like banners, some resting on his table as doilies and some as miniature figurines or cute animal faces and other assorted items all woven using pastel colored yarn. I spotted two mannequins in his room, the ones with the heads removed and the lower half of the bodies missing, both wearing what could be classified as ugly Christmas like sweaters. Lastly his room was decorated with lots and lots of cute little knick knacks of prominent cartoon characters made from yarn or crochet and there were even a few posters inside his room of those same cartoon or video game characters such as Rugs Rabbit, Dario, Pakachi and even a few knitted dolls that looked like schoolgirls with braided yarn hair and unique knitted outfits.

Wayne's room was like an elderly woman's home, but it also had the same charm of every self made hobbyist or DIY'er. Most of everything in his room looked like something you'd see on any type of gift shop or home decor website or department store in any mall. His room smelt just like an old lady's home, but I didn't want to pinch my nose from the mothball like scent as it would have been inconsiderate in his presence.

"So w-what did you w-want to show me?" I asked him, taking in the sights in his room.

"Huh?" he thought it over, pausing for a moment, "Oh right! I just want your opinion on your sweaters' design! Can you tell me what color you like? What kind of material you like?"

His rapid fire questions jumped in my face almost like a paparazzo asking a celebrity on the street about some false scandal. I knew he was hyper, but I never expected him to be so ebullient to the point of it getting a tad annoying. All I could do was humor him, despite my anxiety wanting me to pull me out of his room and leave immediately.

"T-That's fine, W-Wayne...you don't n-need to m-make me anything r-really.." I shook my head, turning down his potential gift.

"Aww really…" he pouted, looking at me with a puppy dog like disappointment plastered on his youthful face, "I wanted to surprise you, but then...Lev accidentally ruined it."

"I uh….um…" I cleared my throat, wanting to clear the air a bit, "I t-think you have t-the wrong idea about t-that...you s-see it was S-Sakai who r-ruined the s-sweater.."

"Oh, really?" he stopped jumping with excitement briefly and thought over what I said, "Are you sure that's what happened?"

As much as I felt that it wasn't really that harmful of a prank, to me it didn't feel right having the knitter misunderstand the situation and falsely perceive the fashion designer as something he's not, because of a third party's meddling. Even though it was meant to be funny, I felt kind of bad for keeping this under wraps knowing what I knew.

"I s-saw him with a c-cup of juice…" I remembered, trying my best to detail what I saw, "He spilled it o-on the sweater…"

"Oh my gosh!" Wayne looked down at his feet, "I feel like such an idiot for accusing Lev now….I hope he's not mad at me…"

I couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the knitter and his rather guilty conscience. I guess he must have been really passionate about the sweater that it clouded his judgement on the topic. While I was technically snitching, to me it's all in good faith, at least I think it was.

"I need to make it up to him!" he rushed over to one of the couches in his room, grabbing one of the available knitting needles but tripping over some yarn, "Oof…ouch."

"A-Are you o-okay?" I asked him, approaching to help him up.

"I'm just dandy, thanks, Kaz!" he removed some tangled yarn from his person, "I'm going to make Lev an apology gift, so I'll have to take a raincheck on making your sweater."

I guess him wanting to remedy tensions between himself and the fashion designer seemed to have made him forget me refusing his sweater offer. From his rather clumsy and erratic movements, Wayne's almost childlike nature made me question if he was really how old he claimed to be, even though I hadn't ask for his age. No wonder he and Lou were so close, the two of them are like a match made in heaven.

"O-Okay...well later, Wayne," I waved to him, sweating nervously as I made my way out of his room.

"Bye, Kaz!" he bade me farewell as he went on knitting whatever it was he was making on the couch.

I made my way outside his room, somewhat glad to be out of there due to the pungent smell of mothballs and lingering fabric softener fragrance. Much like Terrence, Wayne didn't at all seem to be a bad person nor did he harbor any vile intentions. Maybe I'm overthinking things and jumping to conclusions too quickly, I wasn't really sure. So far I've not been able to trigger any kind of memory surge nor was I able to think straight due to my impending sleepiness and slightly discomposed state of mind.

"What a day…" I sleepily reflected on my day so far, "Is e-everyone this lively?"

I ventured down the hallway, feeling a tad disoriented from all the fun diversions I've had until I came across someone walking the opposite direction and heading straight towards me almost.

"Oh hello Kazumi," the person greeted me as our eyes met, "What are you doing out here?"

I blinked my eyes a few times and saw that it was Stella who'd greeted me, a small smile framed on her rather tired looking face. The pub managers' messy silvery purple hair was loosely tied up with some strands perching on the sides of her head and her white shirt slightly crinkled with some buttons on the top undone showing her mint green vest underneath.

"N-Nothing special…" I told her, partially lying on my part, "Just t-trying to m-make p-peace with the o-others, heh…"

"Sounds fun," she chuckled at my lame attempt at humor, "How are you feeling since the incident in the dining room earlier?" she asked.

"It's f-fine...it's h-healing up s-slowly.." I felt the wound on my forehead clear up, with a few red marks left behind, "Just h-having a bit of t-trouble sleeping.."

"Is that so?" she dusted off her clothes and wiped her hands together, "Let me take a look at it for a sec."

In that split second, Stella approached me a little too closely, my face almost close to her as she inspected the mark on my forehead, touching it delicately as to not bruise it too much. She pressed two fingers against the mark, feeling the slight bumps and taking note of the redness and minor swelling.

"Well from the looks of it, I think you need to get this properly cleaned up," she deduced, taking a few steps back, "Come with me to my room, I have an emergency kit with some clean bandages inside."

"Y-You don't need to d-do all t-that, Stella.." I tried reassuring her that I was fine, but it seemed she wasn't having it.

"It won't take too long, Kazumi," she grabbed my arm and carried me down the hall and towards one of the rooms, "Don't be such a worrywart."

From her slightly tired yet stern tone of voice and the way she carried me to her room, I felt like a child about to be scolded for doing something bad. After a while, she let go of my arm and I followed her in suit, hoping that whatever first aid she was going to administer was going to be as painless as possible.

We arrived to one of the doors on the girls side and much like the other doors, it seemed she was no stranger to the very unique designs etched into the frame. There was a plaque of her pixel avatar on the top of the frame with a bunch of beer glasses filled to the brim with a yellow liquid with white foam on the top, both clicking against each other to emulate toasting, a few sports flag banners rested on top of the frame and there was a picture of a plate, fork and knife all resting neatly on a plaid red and white background like some kind of table setting placement.

I almost confused her room entrance for that of a restaurant, but given her talent, it wasn't too far off the mark to make that assumption. She turned the door handle, waited for me as we both entered into her room at the same time.

 **STELLA'S ROOM**

As soon as I walked into the pub manager's room, my nose was welcomed by the warm, smoky yet rich scent of freshly cooked food. That delightful scent was mixed with the sickly bitter pungent smell of alcoholic beverages, both complementing each other but also contrasting each other at the same time. The floor was a hardwood dark brown wooden polish finish with a cleaned sleek look to it that almost reflected my visage. There was a bed in the corner of the room with the blanket having red and brown autumn leaf patterns printed on with a pillow case in the shape of the British flag.

Her room did in fact look like a restaurant, but also had the aesthetic appeal of a sports bar you'd see most people gather around during a major sporting event with there being two square shaped tables with a design of famous newspaper headlines from American to even European headlines almost imprinted into the tabletops with four dark brown chairs to each table. Each table was adorned with a respective plate, fork, knife and glass placement with folded white and red napkins resting at the sides of each plate with clear blue flower vases resting in the center of each table with white flowers stuck inside each one. There were a few corner booths with padded red leather seating and rectangular tables to each one that seat about four people with the same table arrangements as well.

What also took me by surprise was that there was a walk in bar at the opposite side of the room, with shelves and racks of all different brands of alcohol, juice, sodas and even water dispensers. There were a few dark brown stools lined up against the edge of the bar, with a side entrance for waiters and bartenders to enter through with a few ice buckets and drink dispensers at the front of the bar. There was a menu board with colorful chalk markings on the wall next to the bar, with a cute little message and a bunch of flowers and cat faces drawn on the sides, the note said 'Service With A Smile'. There were a few flag banners of sports teams as well as countries hung around the room like party streamers, with a few plasma screen TV's currently turned off and not playing any videos on them, a few white fairy lights lighting up the dimly lit room and there were a few funny caricature portraits of famous sportsmen and other celebrities on the walls all autographed and signed. Behind the bar there was a small TV fireplace that reminded me of the same ones in the lounge and lastly there were a few neon signs all reading different things from 'Happy Hour' to 'Drink Away' and other such slogans.

I had no clue what a pub was before coming to Stella's room, which is to say the presentation didn't disappoint. It didn't even feel like someone's room, but something that belonged in the dining room almost, which made me wonder how much the people who built this place spent to make it look authentic. They even gave her alcohol and booze, which seemed a bit problematic for a bunch of teenagers, but if handled properly I didn't really see the harm in having them as just displays.

"W-Wow...your room looks like a r-r-restaurant," I pointed out, taking note of the room's unusual decor.

"You think, heh, I wasn't expecting this either," she chuckled at my reaction, "I didn't think I'd have a whole pub inside my room as well, it's almost nostalgic."

"How so, Stella?" I asked her, sitting down on one of the available chairs.

"Well, my family owns a pub back home," she mentioned, walking behind the bar and grabbing a few things from underneath the counter, "I thought of how fitting it was, but also thought it kind of impractical as well."

"I s-suppose, but a-at least you d-don't have to w-walk to the kitchen at night to s-snack," I teased, trying to make playful banter but failing.

"I suppose that's one way of looking at it," she giggled, holding a white and blue first aid kit in one hand and resting on the table next to me, "Now hold still, Kazumi."

I did as she instructed, trying my best not to shake or twist any part of my body as she opened up the kit. She pulled out a few cotton swabs, some disinfectant, a clean white rag and a few creme colored bandages, laying them out on the table neatly. She seemed very calm and mellow when I talked to her, almost casually as if I were someone she'd known for a long time. She also seemed older than me, but I sensed a maturity to her persona that made her come off as more big sisterly if anything. She grabbed a cotton bud, dipped it into the brown liquid and dabbed it on my forehead tenderly.

"O-Oww.." I winced, feeling the slight burn touch my semi open wound.

"I'm sorry, but you need to stay still," she said firmly, "This will be over in a minute."

It was almost strange, this sense of parental care and love was almost alien to me. I'd no memory of my past life, but in this moment, it felt like the first time I'd received this kind of treatment. I wasn't sure how to feel, but if anything I didn't want this kind of feeling to pass. She then rinsed off the remaining blood, grabbed the rag she soaked with some water, patted some on my forehead and then stuck two creme bandages over my forehead cut and pressed it smoothly onto my pale skin.

"And there we go," she packed up the first aid kit, sighing tiredly as she stretched her arms out wide, "Feeling better now?"

"I d-do...t-thank you, S-Stella," I tapped the bandage, blushing nervously, "I appreciate it…"

"No problem, it's the least I could do," she brushed some hair out of her face, "Do you want something to drink before you go?"

"I'm f-fine, thank you v-v-very much," I shook my head, turning down the drink.

What's with people giving me stuff today, it made no sense. Was there something compelling them to help me out or shower me with presents? Is it because I was the only one who was unaware of what was going on or lacked any memories? Why did it feel like everyone was just pitying me for some reason?

"Are you sure you don't want at least a water?" she offered, heading behind the bar, "You look like you need to eat something, you look a bit sickly."

"You s-sound like L-Lev," I mumbled, hugging my teddy bear and standing up from my chair, "I'm perfectly a-alright, S-Stella."

Ignoring my words, she grabbed a glass, filled it with water and ice and rested it on top of a coaster by the bar for me. I guess she was the worrying and caring type, it was sweet of her to be concerned, but at the same time, she did all of this for me and I repay her kindness by refusing her service. What is wrong with me today? I sighed, headed over to the bar, took the drink and sipped it a few times.

"V-Very refreshing.." I smiled warmly, drinking half of the drink and resting it back on the counter, "T-Thank you…"

"Consider it on the house," she lightly laughed, "Not like anyone here has any money."

"W-Welp...I s-should go...t-thank you for e-everything," I waved to the pub manager, proceeding to head out of her room.

"Anytime, later Kazumi," she waved back, grabbing a fresh cloth and wiping the countertop of the bar.

I left Stella's room, feeling like the world has been lifted off of my shoulders after talking with her. I'd never been treated as well as that since arriving here and it was almost magical in the sense. I wasn't sure what to make of her so far, but I could say she left a very strong impression in me so far. I was feeling so much contentment, that it felt like nothing could ruin this moment.

"Well hello there my adorable new acquaintance~" a high pitched voice sneaked into my thought process.

Alerted almost immediately, I noticed someone appear from my side, turning to see who it was and came across the last person I wanted to interact with.

"S-Sakai…" I nervously shivered, losing my momentary joy in those few seconds, "H-Hey…"

"Is that all you have to say really?" he squinted his eyes at me with a mischievous smile plastered on his face, "I'm shocked, who would have thought that I would cross paths with the pervert once again~"

I fidgeted around while the hair stylist taunted me mentally, still rolling with the assumption that I was as detestable as he made me out to be. It was irritating that he would openly mock me like this and still manage to smile through it all, almost as if he didn't have an ounce of shame left in his body.

"W-What do you w-want.." I mustered a tiny bit of courage and spoke back to him.

"There's no need for that kind of tone, Kazumi," he snickered, twirling some locks of his long blonde hair, "I was simply going to ask if you wanted a free haircut is all?"

"A h-haircut?" I raised an eyebrow to his claim, "W-Why would I n-n-need one?"

"I mean isn't it obvious," he chuckled playfully to himself, dancing around in his skirt, "Your hair is a mess, looks like you got it stuck in a tree or put it inside a blender or something. I'm surprised you walk outside these corridors looking as awful as you already do."

What's with his attitude? He's been nothing but vicious and callous in almost every sense of the word, even having the gall to brand someone with slanderous names as if it were another Tuesday to him. It's as if he didn't care what others thought and just wanted to cause drama because of it.

"There's n-no need for that…" I slowly backed away from him, "I'm f-fine.."

"No, you're not," he bluntly stated, a small frown forming on his smug makeup ridden face, "You're coming with me whether you like it or not, unless you want round two of false accusations?"

"F-Fine…" I sighed defeatedly, "L-Lead the way.."

"How nice of you to comply like the bottom bitch that you are," he snickered, fixing his white blouse, "Right this way, hon~"

The hair stylist skipped impishly over to one of the doors on the boys side of the hall, which is surprising since he was the one who pretended to be a girl from the get go, so it made no sense why he'd not play coy with the room choices, but why should I even care. He gets a room, I get a room, it really didn't make a difference.

His door frame had the same glass plaque with his pixel avatar on the front, which I would admit was very cute and matched his devious nature. It was also adorned with decal of a pair of scissors snipping long dark hair that was long in length and even sported a few bottles of colored hair dye with some splotches painted onto the door as if to simulate paint.

"Oh boy…" I pondered, steeling myself for what atrocities the hair stylist might do to me.

"In you go Kazumi, thanks for being my first customer!" he opened the door, giggling as if he didn't have a metaphorical knife at my throat, his smile was as ingenuine as his persona.

I entered inside his room, mentally praying that it wasn't going to be as bad as I thought it was. I walked inside his room and hoped for the best, if there was any to begin with.

 **SAKAI'S ROOM**

I braced myself for the worst, hoping that whatever he had in store for me would be as painless as possible and as I set my eyes upon Sakai's room, I was somewhat swayed, but also a bit cautious if anything given the layout of his room. The floor was tiled with what looked to be a smooth stone tile finish with a gleaming shine to the polish. I spied a small canopy bed with pink curtains and rather feminine pillows resting on top of the bed with a silk white blanket covering the top of it, almost like one of those fancy princess beds you see in romantic comedies.

To say his room looked like a hair salon was something else entirely. I saw about three leather black chairs with the little adjuster to raise the seat at the bottoms of each one with three full sized rectangular mirrors to each one with beautifully crafted golden borders around each one. In between each set of mirrors, there was a small black and white drawer like wall cabinet to each one with a lovely pink orchid inside each glass vase filled with water. There were mini stage lights above head almost like something you'd see at a photoshoot making it look like an actual elite hair salon that big names go to. There were racks and shelves filled with all different kinds of beauty products each from different brand names from shampoo, conditioner, hair gel, skin care routines, makeup, moisturizers and even electronic hair brushes as well.

Not only was his room decked out with hair styling utensils, but in the back of his room there was a small little mani/pedi area with tons of multi colored nail polishes from glitter to gel polish. A few stools lined up against each black surfaced table with a hole in the center with a few foot baths as well. In another corner of the room there were hair washing stations with white silk towels neatly resting against each sink with white and black flowers all lined up on glass shelves alongside fancy name brand shampoos and conditioners. To complete the very modernistic take on Sakai's room, there were even retro styled bonnet and hair dryers for people with longer hair that needed to be dried up for a longer period of time. And I almost forgot to mention the hair dying station with tons of colorful and almost rainbow like bottles of hair dye lined all in color coded order with pictures of models with unique hairstyles and colors in their hair. It looked almost too fancy for someone like me, I didn't really know if that applied given that I had no recollection of if I were some rich kid or just another middle class person rubbing elbows with the powerful and famous.

"Impressed by my room, aren't you?" Sakai jumped in, interrupting my train of thought once again, "I highly doubt you'd ever been in a place as fancy as this."

"W-What's this all a-a-about, Sakai?" I asked him, getting straight to the point, "W-Why'd you ask me t-t-to come a-anyway?"

"Well duh, to give you a freaking haircut of course," he scoffed, almost offended by what I said, "It'll at least make you look somewhat decent in public."

"W-Why are you d-doing this?" I asked him, still wary of his intentions, "I thought y-you didn't l-like me?"

"Oh but I do, Kazumi~" he giggled, skipping over to one of the hair stations, "I love making everyone miserable, including hapless saps like you, it just makes my day even brighter!"

I tried following his logic, but wound up even more confused by his antics than I was before the first time I met him. He's offering me a haircut, yet has been nothing but hostile and devious from the moment we met, it's almost a puzzle to figure out someone like him.

"Now come sit," he patted the leather chair, "Don't be such a baby."

I hesitantly yielded to the hair stylist's demands and sat in the leather seat, resting my backpack and teddy bear off to the side of me as he grabbed a large cape like cloth and wrapped it around my neck. The cape itself was black with white spots over the pattern and it had that new clothing smell mixed with the scent of freshly cut flowers and nail polish. The idea that someone like him was going to take a pair of scissors to my head and start snipping at it, was by far the scariest thing I'd imagine it to be. All I could do was sit there and take it.

"A-Alright…" I mumbled, wanting to close my eyes, but kept my eyes trained on Sakai like a hawk.

In a fell swoop, Sakai grabbed a pair of scissors and with surprisingly dexterous fingers, began cutting my hair strand by strand, his eyes focused on each piece that he cut and tossed to the floor. After a few snips, he grabbed a bottle of clear liquid, spritzed some of it on my head and began cutting the wet ends of my hair as the water dripped to the ground. For once, I didn't feel that scared as he didn't really do anything different to what regular stylists do.

"So..I heard you told Wayne about the sweater incident," Sakai snipped a piece of my hair rather loudly, "Did you two have a fun time?"

I stopped breathing almost right then and there. How did he find out about that!? I'm pretty sure the rooms were soundproof, at least I thought they were. Did Wayne leave the door open by accident and Sakai just happened to stop by?

"I thought so, you didn't need to say anything," he snickered, patting down the sides of my head with a black towel rather lightly, "I didn't actually notice anything, I just took a wild guess is all~"

"T-That was a r-r-rather great g-guess?!" I stammered out, almost surprised by this.

"When I hear my name mentioned, I always make it my top priority to sniff out the source, honey," he rested the towel on the side of another chair, "So don't think you can sneak a fast one by me like that again, alright?"

While his words were emphasized with a cute high pitched tone, I could sense a feeling of malice radiating from his presence along. It's almost like a demon's aura in that sense, it was very intimidating especially coming from someone almost smaller in size than me.

"Now time to wash you off," he removed the cape from my person, the hair follicles flew to the floor, "Come on, I don't have all day."

I steadily escaped the confines of the leather chair and made my way to the washing station, resting my butt on the soft cushiony surface and leaned my head against the sink hole, awaiting the hair stylist's next directions.

"I hope you like warm water," he chuckled, turning on the sink head as a rush of lukewarm steam poured out.

In that split second, Sakai's unusually soft fingers brushed through my thick wet hair like a mother brushing her child's hair. I felt almost relaxed and somewhat sleepy in those few minutes I was getting pampered by him, a little too comfortable for my liking. He grabbed a few white bottles of shampoo, scrubbed it into my hair vigorously, rinsed it out and then rubbed some conditioner in it effortlessly. After a few warm rinses, he grabbed my hair and began draining the excess water out of it and into the drain, pushing my body up as he grabbed a towel and tossed it into my face.

"Do you want hair gel? You look like you need it," he snidely commented, grabbing a clear blue gel from the counter next to one of the stations.

"I s-suppose so…" I wiped my forehead and dried my hair, feeling the warm towel press against my skin.

Sakai approached me, squeezed some product out of the tube and began going to town on my hair, styling it in the way that most stylists do, trying to make it look neat and presentable.

"There we go," he rubbed his hands together with a wet towel, grabbed one of the mini mirrors and put it behind my head, "What do you think?"

I turned my gaze to the mirror, afraid to look at my own reflection out of fear and what I saw almost made me double take in awe. While my hair didn't look drastically different, Sakai had neatened my side burns, cut off a few loose strands and styled my hair so that there were a few strands perched on my forehead with a more fashionable take on my messily curled hair. It looked very cool, almost like something a runway model would sport when advertising a new clothing line, the hair by extension was an asset alongside the clothing and makeup.

"W-Wow...it looks good, thanks," I uneasily thanked him, touching my hair and feeling some parts of it stiffen from the gel, "F-For a second, I t-thought you'd c-chop it all off or s-something."

"I may like to mess with people dearie," he rubbed my shoulders, "But I take my job seriously and never let petty matters like you snitching on me affect that, because then I wouldn't be an Ultimate."

I guess that made sense, if he were to ruin a client's hairstyle, then I imagine he'd get sued or scolded. As much as he reminded me of a gremlin, he did a fantastic job and his talent wasn't unearned in any sense of the word.

"I a-appreciate it.." I replied, nodding my head, "I apologize if w-we got off o-on the w-w-wrong foot earlier."

"No need for silly apologies like that," he shook his head, playing with the bow behind him, "I like teasing losers like you, so consider this a mutual partnership, in that aspect."

"A-And I should g-go…" I proceeded to leave his room, almost speed walking out, "Bye!"

"Have fun, Kazumi, think of me in your dreams next time," he chuckled playfully, obviously trying to get a rise out of me as I closed the door behind me.

I'd never been so frazzled, scared and shaken in my entire life. While I do appreciate the pampering, I couldn't help but be on the edge of my seat the entire time I was in there. I felt like the hair stylist was going to stab his scissors into my neck at any moment's notice, but maybe that's the paranoia talking. I still didn't really trust him, after the mess he caused earlier, I'd not hold my breath when it comes to his antics.

"Kazumi? Is that you?" another familiar voice called out to me, "Are you alright?"

I then turned to my left and saw someone approaching me at a brisk pace, their light blue hair bouncing up and down and their dark blue eyes staring back at me, with a somewhat concerned look on their face.

"Iena?" I said, noticing her walk up to me, "H-Hey...w-what are you d-doing out h-here?"

The judge walked up to me, dusting off her light grey jacket and fixing her hair. She seemed to be in a hurry, almost giddy with excitement almost, but kept a professional calm face.

"I'd heard from Monotide, that we were getting our own rooms," she said, sounding amused by the idea, "So I was on my way to see it for myself, how about yourself?"

"I uh...funny you s-say that," I chuckled embarrassedly, "I've been v-v-visiting the others….what M-Monotide said was true."

"I knew it," she smiled happily, nodding her head, "In that case, would you like to accompany me to my room and add another visit to your ever growing list," she giggled after that last remark.

I wasn't sure what to say back to her, but she was so interested in knowing what her room was like, that that same feeling resonated with me as well. I nodded my head, agreeing to her claim and walked alongside her and looked over to the girls side of the hallway. We walked around, passing by a few rooms I've already been to until we came across an unfamiliar one that seemed to be the right one.

The door had a glass plaque of her pixel avatar on the front with a few decal stickers plastered on her door as well. Pictures of prize ribbons with positive slogans such as 'Number One' and 'You're a winner' were no the top next to her plaque with a few numbered title cards on the bottom with a gold, silver and bronze trophy all lined up against each other in order of most successful to least successful. If anyone was confused on if she was actually a judge in the legal profession or not, this door frame literally spelled it out for everyone involved.

I turned to the judge, seeing the smile on her face slightly disappear in exchange of a small frown. She didn't look exactly pleased by the initial presentation, but shrugged it off and opened up the door handle, entering in first as I followed close behind her. She didn't say a word as we both went inside, it was almost awkward like being a third wheel at a group gathering.

 **IENA'S ROOM**

As we both stepped a few inside her room, we were both greeted by a very pleasant sight, if not a little excessive and elaborate in interior design compared to how simplistic or over the top the other rooms were. If anything this room was the very definition of upper class, which was the easiest way to explain its grand decor.

Smack dab in the center of her room lay a fluffy looking queen sized bed with about five pillows, both the blanket and pillow covers were made from soft velvet blue fabric and shone in the faint aquatic light from above. The carpet was soft and smoothly tiled with a light grey finish with white lines between each tile mark. Unlike the other wardrobes, hers was more elegant in craftsmanship and was made from mahogany wood with curls and intricate patterns etched into the design with her suits all lined up neatly against each other in a color coded fashion, despite them being the same outfit.

There were about two different tables all lined up on opposite sides of the room, with a few numbered title cards from 0-10 resting on the table, a few scoring sheets and cartoon like pictures of hot dogs, pies and other such foods resting on top of the desk. The other table had a bunch of photographs of the judge herself, shaking hands with the winners of pageants, eating competitions, singing/dancing shows and other such events with her handing them the prizes and shaking their hands or hugging them. She almost seemed happy in those photos, but they more seemed to be obligatory smiles instead of genuine ones. There were a bunch of flower bouquets and stuffed plushies of deer resting on the tables as well, which made me almost double take at how out of place they seemed. On the walls of her room were a bunch of trophies all lined up on shelves, mostly gold or silver ones of varying shapes and sizes, none of them were bronze with a bunch of more colorful ribbons hanging off the sides of each wooden shelf.

The real kicker and icing on the cake, ironically enough, was the by far the one thing that stuck out most in her room. At the back middle of her room was a judge's podium, the same kind you see in courtroom TV shows or in real life; it was light brown in color and there was a fancy red leather chair resting in the center with a bunch of blue ribbons with the words 'At Least You Tried' and other such derisive slogans including 'Better Luck Next Time' and 'Number One Participant' all stuck to the front of the podium as if it were meant to poke fun at Iena's actual talent. There was even a fake emblem on the top above the wall of the justice scales with a Lady Justice statue resting on the right side of her podium desk with a brown gavel on the left side.

While her room wasn't as spontaneous or extraordinary like the other ones, there was a sense of simplicity and order to her room that made it more pleasing to the eye. However as I turned my attention over to Iena's, I noticed the almost dejected look on her face.

She seemed somewhat upset, but more so in the pissed off but calm manner where she didn't show much inflections in her body language, but her lips twitched briefly and the decor seemed to hit a bit too close to home for her when she saw the judge's desk. The look on her face said it all, it was like a punch to the gut reaction if anything.

"A-A-Are you alright, I-Iena?" I broke the silence, feeling sorry for her, "D-Do you w-want to talk about it?"

"Huh? O-Oh it's nothing Kazumi," she shook off the dour look on her face in exchange for a smug smile instead, "Just a little taken aback at how the organizer behind all of this managed to get those photos of me is all, I was just…"

She trailed off, walking over to the tables and looking at each picture almost solemnly. I hope I didn't say anything to offend her, I guess her talent is a bit of a sore spot for her if she's this downtrodden.

"A-Are you s-sure?" I asked, prodding a little further.

"Yeah, I'm fine, it's nothing," she stubbornly stated, "I think I'm going to take a quick nap after I finish sorting my room out and getting all these things off the table."

"I s-see…" I acknowledged her request, "W-Well I'll be going now…"

"A-Ah alright, t-thanks for accompanying me, Kazumi," she cleared her throat rather loudly, "I'll take it from here, have a nice day."

I waved to the judge, feeling somewhat guilty even though I didn't do anything to make her mad or depressed. Even though I had no idea who she was or if those pictures in her room were really taken, but I could almost feel her pain and I wanted to know more. I guess she just needs room to breathe is all, she's just like us, all caught up in an unpredictably awkward and pseudo life threatening position.

I left her room, closed the door behind me and sighed sleepily. How many rooms had I visited in these short few hours? How long has it been since I've arrived here? I had no clue or idea of what was to come next? I didn't even know if it was night time or day time given that the ocean light above was so faint that it made it nearly impossible to deduce.

"S-So sleepy…" I yawned, trying to keep myself awake, "W-What am I doing...I can't s-sleep yet."

I stared at the ceiling aimlessly, unsure of what I was looking at as I saw lots of fish swim by and above my head. The alluring colors and aquatic sea life seemed to all pass by me, whilst I stood there watching everything quietly, almost wanting to fall asleep right then and there.

"Oh, hello there, Kazumi," I heard a voice call out to me once again, "What are you doing out here by yourself?"

The voice was male and sounded almost deep in tone. I looked up to see who was talking to me and came face to face with Yoshikazu, standing there and looking at me with a curious gaze. The auctioneer stood tall and proud, but bent over to talk to me whilst I was on the floor. His silver hair and piercing green eyes were so hypnotizing to look at and his beard almost made me confuse him for an adult. It might be weird for me to admit this, but he was a very handsome man and his rather muted yet rugged looks and beard made him look even more imposing up close.

"Are you tired? Do you need some help getting back to your room?" he asked me, politely inquiring as to why I was slumped against the wall.

"A-Ah...h-hi Kazu.." I looked him the eye, brushing aside some strands of ungelled hair from my face, "I'm just a little g-groggy is a-all.."

"If you're not feeling well I can stop what I'm doing and assist you," he firmly said, his deep voice almost entrancing to listen to.

"I'm f-fine..r-really, just having t-trouble s-s-sleeping is all," I remarked rather tiredly, "I'm j-just trying to k-keep busy…"

"I see, in that case, would you like to assist me in carrying some boxes?" he asked, not pushing the topic further and getting the message, "Aphrodite asked me to help her with some stuff."

I didn't know he was so helpful on top of it all. I guess it can't really be helped, he seemed like the fatherly type if anything, much like Stella, he seemed to be very mature for his age and I wouldn't put the idea of him offering to help the others past him. It did seem a bit weird to be taking requests from others just because they asked, let alone to people you just met, but I didn't want to be rude and point that out to him.

"S-Sure...I d-don't mind," I replied back to him, mulling it over, "W-Where are they?"

"I have extra boxes in my room, it seems she was insistent on the idea of purging her closet," he mentioned, "What she calls 'A super duper fashion emergency'."

I can definitely see her saying something like that, it almost fits the pageant queen's character. I stood up from my seat, dusting off my clothes and agreed to the auctioneer's offer.

"Lead t-the way.." I hugged my teddy bear, straightening up my backpack.

"You have a bit of dust on your clothes," he licked his finger, wiping something off of my sweater, "There we go, now follow me to my room, Kazumi."

Slightly baffled by his sudden need to dust off my shirt, I shrugged it off and followed him to his room, hoping to keep my brain awake and somewhat active. For someone as formally polite and somewhat imposing in appearance, Yoshikazu had a very charismatic way with words. It's either that or I'm just easily convinced, I wasn't too sure at that point.

I followed him to one of the boys doors as we both came over to his room's front door. His door sported the same glass plaque of a pixel avatar on the front, even having the same beard pixels on its face as well alongside a bunch of art portraits, old ancient vases, ancient Japanese armor and weapons plastered on the frame in decal form. I guess even he was no stranger to the strange whimsical nature of Monotide's shenanigans.

"After you," he turned the doorknob, allowing me to enter first.

"T-Thanks…" I said, as he went in after me and closed the door behind us.

 **YOSHIKAZU'S ROOM**

Once I stepped inside his room, my nose was assaulted by what could be described as musty rotting cheese mixed with some kind of fancy musk used in colognes. Out of respect, I avoided pinching my nose shut as to avoid offending the auctioneer's feelings. Aside from that, I took in his room layout and design.

The floor was fashioned with a scratchy black and white carpet with specially patterned historical Japanese designs etched into the fabric such as sakura trees, Japanese temples and other such visual imagery, whoever wove the rug was very much a stickler for details. There was an old looking weathered bed in the corner of his room with beige and dark green blankets and pillows resting on his bed.

His room was like an art house backroom, it was filled to the brim with all sorts of things. There were lots of unique paintings inside his room, hung up on both the walls of his room as well as resting against the walls on the floors. There were glass display cases with old ancient pottery, armor, spears, swords, masks and even half finished stone sculptures all sequestered off respectively in their own little corners of his room. There were a few colorful murals inside his room, each ranging from modern abstract art to ancient watercolor, ink or oil paintings from the Victorian Era, to the Feudal Era and even the Stone Ages as well. His room was like a mini museum in of itself.

There was a small brown podium in the center of his room with a gavel and small square table next to his podium as well, probably similar to how most auctioneers would present the works being sold to potential influencers and buyers. There were a few foldable chairs inside his room as well, about five to be exact, all lined up in a row with each one having numbered hand paddles so he could see who was going to buy the next art piece. Lastly his room had many black iron shelves with other art pieces and boxes full of rusted metal and or old jewelry from different time periods of history.

His room was like a representation of a culmination of all the decades and centuries that have past and it felt like one of those school field trips most students would go on when in high school or something. I could definitely see someone like Yoshikazu being interested in works like these, I guess having to lug heavy art pieces around and having to sell off these items to investors has made him even more intrigued into the backstory behind each piece. It would also explain his rather stocky build and salesman like personality of being so suave as well, but I'm just just too awestruck to think of anything else.

"Lost in the art are you?" he inquired, a small pleased smile formed on his face, "I'd be happy to tell you all about each piece of work, Kazumi."

"T-Thank you, K-Kazu...I'm just a-amazed," my eyes widened at the sight of everything, "W-Who knew y-you'd have s-so much stuff in h-here…"

"It kind of took me off guard as well, I was equally as astonished by some of these works too," he said happily, it seemed I got him excited to talk about his work, "Like that armor set over there, did you know that it wasn't until the fourth century that Japan started to produce helmets and cuirasses and armor eventually evolved from both Korean and Chinese cultures, fun fact."

"H-Huh..I didn't know t-that," I giggled, a bit amused by his sudden enthusiasm in detailing each items in his room.

"And those small vases over there were made in Ancient Greece and Rome," he pointed over to another display, "Not only were they used for drinking, but also as storage and transport vessels, mixing pots and even used to contain makeup and cosmetics as well."

The auctioneer continued to regale me with even more tales behind each piece of art, almost acting like a personal tour guide in that respect. It seemed like I was sitting there and listening to him talk about each painting and weapon for almost an hour, it was really fascinating if anything. I sat there like a child listening to someone read a storybook as his lilting voice ensnared me in the lecture.

"Where is Yoshikazu!?" yelled a rather annoyed female voice, "Where are you hiding?!"

I jumped to my feet, almost like a scared animal as I was about to make a swift exit before someone interrupted our conversation. Their long blonde ponytailed hair swayed from side to side and brown eyes only highlighted how peeved they were.

"A-Aphrodite!? O-Oh.." I saw the pageant queen furiously enter the auctioneer's room and stomp her feet like an upset toddler.

"Out of my way nerd!" she pushed me to the side curtly and made her way to Yoshikazu, ignoring my presence, "What are you doing!? You're supposed to be helping me get rid of those old ugly rags!"

"I'm sorry, I had simply lost track of time, Aphrodite," he apologized to the clearly irritated girl, "I will get back to organizing your clothes as soon as possible."

"Hmph! That's more like it," she huffed, crossing her arms and then turning to look at me, "I see you got a new hairdo, cute but still not my type."

What's with her attitude? Why is she acting like some entitled rich kid? I mean she didn't really seem all that friendly when we first met, if anything she seemed rather self absorbed if anything. The pageant queen stood there looking at me with a contemptuous look as I stood there, almost confused as to why she was being so mean to me.

"I'm s-sorry as well," I meekly conceded, "I was t-the one w-who kept h-him back, it's m-m-my fault."

"Is it now?" she scoffed, rolling her eyes at me, "I don't really care, but because of you, I had to sort through all those hideous scarves and ugly dresses by myself, I don't have time for such boring labor, who do you people think I am!"

I wanted to retort her claims, but my mind told me to hold back as to not cause a stir and ruin anything inside the auctioneer's room. I'd imagine if I were to say anything else to her, then I'd get an abstract 19th century painting slammed into my head or something.

"I got all the boxes," Yoshikazu announced, holding up unfolded boxes, "Can you please aid me, Kazumi?"

"Oh s-s-sure thing.." I rushed to help him, grabbing a few boxes and carrying them in my free hands and resting my teddy bear inside my backpack.

"Thank you for being such good little boys," Aphrodite giggled, brushing back her ponytail, "Now follow me to my room, no peeking up my skirt now, fellas~"

As she sauntered out of the room merrily, Yoshikazu carried the unfolded boxes without a fuss as I followed behind him. I closed the door to his room as he and I both watched the pageant queen skip over to her room. It seemed she wasn't used to manual labor, which was evident enough given her demeanor and porcelain light skin.

Her door had a glass plaque with a pixel avatar of her character on the front, all dressed in pink from head to toe. On the frame of her door were a bunch of colorful dresses, sparkly feather boas, flashing cameras and glitter sparkling light decals printed on the front with a silver tiara resting above the plaque to symbolize her status as a princess like figure. As much as she came off narcissistic, the personality of her door spoke volumes to her character and we hadn't entered her room yet.

"You guys are so slow," she pouted childishly, opening up the door, "Come inside."

She skipped on ahead, not even bothering to hold open the door for either of us. Sighing deeply but yielding to the situation, Yoshikazu offered to hold the door open for me as we both went inside her room, awaiting more tedious orders.

 **APRHODITE'S ROOM**

Upon entering the pageant queen's room, I was instantly blinded by the bright light from what appeared to be some kind of runway spotlight. I stumbled backwards, before Yoshikazu braced my fall, resting the half finished boxes on the floor as I watched Aphrodite head up a flight of stairs of some kind of stage.

For starters, her room was almost offensively pink from head to toe, her carpet was a fuzzy cotton candy like fur texture that was almost like walking on a cloud. The walls were bedazzled with pink and white jewels and beads that accentuated each individual wall tile and even the open skylight above had a pink filter above it to make the ocean look like some fruity liquid concoction. Her bed was at the back middle of the room and it was one of those circular beds with a pink and black cheetah print blanket and white and pastel pink pillows resting on top of the bed with a few colorful stuffed animals and heart pillows decorating the sides of the bed.

The room itself was outfitted to look exactly like a pageant runway in every sense of the word. There was a wooden catwalk with mini fluorescent spotlights all aimed in varying directions, reflecting off of the silver heart shaped disco ball that hung from the center of the ceiling. The runway itself was shaped like a T from overhead and on each side of the stage were a mini flight of stairs and a bunch of confetti and rose petals scattered on the floor of the runway. There were a few silver clothing racks inside her room with an array of very lurid and distastefully sequined and low cut dresses of all different colors, unsurprisingly the most prevalent color dress was pink or magenta.

There were a few pageant trophies and diamond tiaras resting on either side of her room on top of wooden shelves, with a few picture frames hung up on the walls of the pageant queen posing, blowing kisses and waving to her adoring fans wearing a white sash around her body and carrying an absurdly huge bouquet of flowers in her left arm. To finish off her room's rather eye sore inducing look, there were a few vanities with rather large mirrors and light bulbs around the edges of each mirror with stools next to each table. I assumed they were makeup tables judging from all the hair spray, lipsticks, perfumes, mascaras, eyeliners and other such feminine products scattered along the tables. There were even posters of famous pop groups such as Quintet Melody and Tiny Remix, from what I could vaguely remember are very well known girl groups popular overseas.

I was slightly disoriented and almost felt sick when looking at her room in general. I'd never seen so much of the same color all in one place clash so poorly and tackily against each other before. I knew it sounded a bit harsh of me to judge Aphrodite's style, but from the moment we met, she's been nothing but judgemental and kind of mean to me for no reason. I didn't want to be rude and insult her room's decor however, because I knew not to stir the pot considering she was that type of person.

"Here you go," she said, hauling a huge pile of ugly slit dresses over to us, "I need you to get rid of all this unfabulous garbage, the greens clash with my hair, the yellows aren't my color and don't even get me started on the blues, ugh!"

"I see, let's get to fixing these boxes, Kazumi," the auctioneer nodded his head, not showing much frustration in his tone.

"R-Right…" I nervously remarked, helping him fold the boxes and pack the dresses inside of each one.

Once we had finished sorting out all the boxes, Aphrodite came back with more dresses she found unfitting or unflattering to the human eye, which I can agree with her on that part. Most of the dresses in her room were dresses that covered most of her body, had glitter and sequins that pretty much covered the entire outfit or sported too much feathers that would be sufficient to replant on a bird's body.

"T-That's the last of t-t-them.." I wiped some sweat from my forehead, "H-How long h-have we been here?"

"Not long enough!" Aphrodite scoffed again, this time sitting at a vanity with tons of makeup on it, "You two took so long to finish packing that my makeup is starting to crinkle and crumple up."

"Why don't you go on ahead, Kazumi," Yoshikazu rested his hand on my shoulder, "I'm going to take these boxes and put them somewhere in storage."

"A-Alright.." I agreed, immediately heading out of the pageant queen's room as to save the rest of my eyesight.

I felt bad for leaving him alone with Aphrodite, but I guess he must have seen how nervous I was the entire time I was in there. I guess that's the price you pay for being too generous I suppose.

"Yo Kaz," a voice called out to me, "What's up?"

I turned to my right to see someone else approach me, what's with me being so popular today? I noticed the person walking up to me casually, their spiky blue cobalt hair and eyes made them almost blend in with the cool colors of the hallway if not for their very unique outfit.

"O-Oh h-hi Sato.." I anxiously greeted him, hugging my teddy bear loosely, "Just w-wondering the halls.."

"That's cool," he smiled confidently, playing with the crab stick in his mouth, "Are you alright? Haven't had any seizures or sudden mood changes?"

"N-Nothing like t-that…" I looked down at my feet, "E-Except for the n-nightmares…"

"Nightmares?" he crossed his arms, looking at me worriedly, "Is there anything I can do to help?"

I shook my head at the lifeguard, unsure if I wanted him poking into my personal affairs. He seemed like a decent guy, he even went out of his way to help me out earlier, I wasn't sure what to think really. I mean do I confide in another stranger about my feelings or my lost memories like I did with Yumeji and Terrence? It was a tough call to make.

"Earth to Kazumi?" Sato waved his hand out in front of my face, "You good dude?"

"H-Huh!? Oh, e-everything is f-fine!" I nervously waved my hands defensively, "Just s-spaced out a little.."

"I know this might come off a bit forward of me, but don't hesitate to ask me for help Kazumi," he looked me directly in the eye, "I may be a lifeguard, but that doesn't mean I can't help you guys out, just because no one is drowning."

His words were somewhat convincing, while he didn't really look the part, his puppy dog eyes almost made me want to tell him everything about what the problem was. He reminded me of those big brother types in a funny sense.

"I s-see….s-should we go s-somewhere private?" I scratched the back of my neck.

"How about my room," he eagerly said, almost agreeing with my notion, "That's the best place for us to chat with no unwanted visitors."

"S-Sounds good.." I nodded my head, "L-Lead the w-way.."

He then smiled from ear to ear, walking over to one of the boys rooms and I followed close behind him. I guess you could say I was clingy, but like with a few others, Sato felt like someone I could trust, even if I had no reason to trust him whatsoever. Maybe it's personality or his status as a lifeguard, but there was something compelling me to almost let him into my world so to speak.

We arrived to one of the doors and his door's design reminded me of Ushio's door since they're both aquatic talents, but his door was more unique in his own way. His door frame had a pixel character image of himself on a glass plaque on the top of his door and underneath there were decal of a white life preserver, orange buoys with bright lights, blue tidal waves, a red heart with a white cross in the center and a picture of a cartoon drowning victim.

The door itself, much like the others, almost screamed at you that this was their respective inhabitants' room, because who needs subtlety. He twisted the door handle and I followed him inside his room, closing the door behind me.

 **SATO'S ROOM**

At this point, I half expected Sato's room to be synonymous to the others ones I've visited briefly. I guess I surprised by how simple it looked, but at the same time, it's not at all what I pictured it to be.

There was a bed at the corner end of his room with a plain blue wave patterned blanket and white pillow resting on his bed. The floor was tiled a pure white with rough brownish yellow sandy bits spliced in between each tile to emulate sand I suppose. I spied a few medical cabinets inside his room, presumably in the instance someone who drowned needed medical care, with tons medicine bottles, needles and even emergency first aid kits inside from what I can through the glass casing. There was a small section of his room sequestered off from the rest of his room with a strong glass aquarium like view of water waves peering behind the glass, with starfish, crabs and seashells all sitting on the sand inside. There was a lifeguard high chair with a red and white life preserver hanging from the side of the chair with an orange and blue striped umbrella resting underneath. The light in the room was awfully brighter than in other rooms and because of that, most of the underwater skylight above was tinted with a blue covering to make it look like some kind of neon blue light, almost to simulate being underwater for too long, which almost seemed ironic. There were also a few couches inside his room, both a bright azure color much like the water outside with yellow star shaped pillows

There was a small hot tub in another corner of his room, with the water pouring out hot white steam and bubbles popping from inside the rapidly thrusting waters. I spotted a half broken white diving board hung up on the wall alongside a few brown fishing nets with plastic sea creatures resting inside which made his room look more nautical. In another corner of his room, I spotted a few clothes hung up on the walls, such as a few sleeveless white shirts with the words 'LIFEGUARD' written in dark blue letters, bright red swimming trunks with white lines running along the sides with white circles with red crosses emblemed, a few black wetsuits, bright yellow baggy lifeguard jackets and even red visor caps.

The final few things, that almost made me question why they were inside his room, were a bunch of half bodied peach mannequins all resting on the ground, with plastic bags over their mouths and one white mannequin resting on top of a hospital gurney. I assumed the dummies were used to train lifeguards in CPR, which made sense, but what creeped me out the most was the mannequin on the gurney. Was it to represent the one drowning victim that didn't get saved? Was it some kind of poetic irony that Monotide used to jeer Sato with? If anything it was a morbid joke, if anything, which made me twice as uncomfortable.

"Make yourself comfortable, Kaz," he welcomed me into his room, "Sorry if it looks a bit cluttered."

"T-That's f-fine, Sato.." I said, reassuring him, "I w-was the one w-who a-asked for s-somewhere private to t-t-talk."

"Nah, I'm the one who suggested my room, no biggie," he chuckled, heading over to one of the couches and jumping on it lazily, "So what's on your mind?"

"W-Well...I've not b-been sleeping well…" I sat down on the same couch as he did, resting my tired back against the star shaped cushion, "E-Ever since I w-w-woke up here...I've been h-having terrible visions.."

"Visions? What do you mean by that?" he inquired, crossing his leg over the other and his arms as well.

"It's k-kind of hard to d-d-describe….l-like I'm being guided t-towards something.." I quietly said, dubious of what I was even saying, "E-Everything w-was b-black...t-there was s-something c-calling out t-to me."

"Like a demon? Or some kind of monster?" the lifeguard asked, almost intrigued by what I was saying, "What did you do next?"

"I uh...t-that's the h-hard part…" I squeamishly explained, my fingers tensing up, "I s-saw some kind of v-v-vision...I w-wasn't sure what it was, b-but it l-looked almost l-like a m-memory of some kind.."

Sato pondered on what I just said, humming to himself as if he were trying to come up with a solution to my dilemma. I knew he wasn't a therapist or some kind of psychologist like Yumeji, but I felt that talking to more people about it, would at least help me out. They always say that you should get a second opinion, even if the person in question I'm asking supposedly didn't know how to comprehend my situation.

"As much as it pains me to say it," he gnashed his teeth together, almost regretfully, "I'm not much of an expert on this kind of stuff, Kaz, but I think that was a good sign."

"A g-g-good sign?" I looked up at him, my ears trained on his next few words, "W-What do y-you mean?"

"Well..this is just a wild guess on my part, I ain't no doctor," he remarked calmly, "But I suspect that that vision you had was a memory of yours trying to resurface, so to speak."

Hearing him explain his thoughts was almost a relief to hear. While I kind of understood what he meant, all this talk about triggering a memory, talking to people and keeping busy didn't really get me anywhere. With Sato however, he gave it to me straight, not beating around the bush and trying his best to assist me.

"I g-guess that m-makes sense…" I nervously replied, looking down at my feet, "I'm just n-not sure w-what to do...w-where am I? W-What am I doing h-here in the f-first place? Nothing makes a-any sense…"

"Kazumi, listen to me," Sato stood up, resting his hands on my shoulders, "You can overcome this, it just..takes time is all, you shouldn't fuss over the nitpicky details of everything, just take a deep breath, in and out."

Surprised by his sudden advice, I did as he instructed, slowly breathing in through my nose and exhaling slowly out my mouth. I felt slightly better, as if some a fraction of my fears were allayed by a simple exercise like that, but it didn't offer much solace. I did that for a few more times, hoping it would help and nothing happened.

"I don't think doing it constantly like that helps," he sweatdropped at my attempts, almost feeling pity for me, "But just know if there's anything I can do to help, let me know anytime, Kazumi," patting me on the back.

I felt the warmth from his hand touch my back as a fuzzy feeling surged throughout my body. He's right, I shouldn't be stressing over something as trivial as the details to why I'm here or how I got my amnesia, I need to focus on how to cure it so to speak. However before I could finish my thoughts, a loud sound erupted the tranquil silence and a figure emerged into Sato's room.

"Ahoy mateys!" a girl's voice echoed throughout, "The Jolly Roger's sails led me here, I couldn't help but overhear yer plight landlubber!"

"T-Takara!?" I jumped in my seat, shocked by the sailor's sudden presence, "W-Wha?!"

"Did you have to burst through my door like that, Kara?" Sato asked, unimpressed with her wild antics.

"Aye, me hearty!" she proudly remarked, her fuschia hair bouncing behind her wildly, "This lily-livered lad over here is need of me help, someone's gotta brighten his day!"

"H-Huh?" I asked, confused by what she meant by that, "W-What do y-"

Before I could protest her request, Takara grabbed my by my arm, dragging me out of the lifeguard's room and into the hallway.

"Good luck Kaz!" Sato waved to me, also perplexed by the ordeal as we both left his room.

The sailor and I stormed out of the lifeguard's room, my arm nearly dislocated from the amount of times it's been pulled around by stronger hands. Takara's expressive gleeful face said it all, she had something in store for me and I was doubly as worried for what she had planned as the next person.

"W-Where are w-w-we going?" I asked her, trying to break myself free from her iron grip.

"Aye laddie, we be off to the Cap'n quarters!" she eloquently said, meaning her room most likely, "There be something I have fer ya!"

I guess being as vague as humanly possible, didn't do much to assuage my growing concerns. She eventually loosened her grip on my arm, the red bruising on my arm looked even brighter than before and almost to the point where it blended into my skin tone. Takara grabbed the door handle to her room and twisted it open, not before I took in its details much like the other rooms.

The door sported the same character plaque with a pixel version of the sailor on the top of the door, with a few decal stickers of a black pirate flag with a skull and crossbones on the front, a loaded pirates chest brimming to the top with gold coins and jewels and two clashing pirate swords near the top of the frame to simulate a pirate fight. It seemed fitting for her, almost humorously so.

"After ye, first matey!" she excitedly opened the door, allowing me to enter first.

"T-Thanks…" I anxiously replied, heading inside her room and watching her close the door behind us.

 **TAKARA'S ROOM**

Despite the rather brusque invitation to the sailor's room, I pretended as if it were any other regular visit, much like the previous ones. Much to my expectations, Takara's room was pretty much exactly what I surmised it to be, but with so much more added to it.

Her room from head to toe, looked like the inside of a pirates ship, the walls, the ceiling and even the floors were covered in mossy rotted wood with a few holes in some of the patterns so that some of the outside light could peer into her room. The floor was also outfitted with a few patches of yellowish brown carpet to emulate sandy beaches or shores much like Sato's room. There was a large king sized bed inside her room with a red blanket cover with a black pirate flag on the front with a black and yellow striped pillow on the bed. In the center of her room there lay some kind of steering wheel used to direct ships around, it was carved from wood and polished to an almost mirror like shine with a few sea themed plushies such as sharks, dolphins, fish and fake swords resting underneath it.

I spotted a few actual real life cannons used in ship combat to sink ships with a few large black cannonballs resting in the corner of her room, however they were covered in cobwebs and dust making them practically futile. If there was one thing that creeped me out in her room, were that there were a few skeletons wearing eyepatches, bandanas on their heads, carrying plastic swords or were holding treasure hung up on the walls of her room like some kind of dark Halloween decoration. There was a large wooden chest by the side of her bed, filled to the brim with actual gold coins and a bunch of pearls and gems scattered inside, all gleaming incandescently and glinted with a shine. In the center of the room there was a small circular like podium, I wasn't sure of the proper term for it, with a pirate flag flowing above with a picture of the same skull as the one on her door frame.

The sounds of the ocean were louder in here than before with some of the crashing waves from outside banging against the unusually strong tempered glass outside. I spotted a desk in one corner of the room, resembling a pirate's map with the tiny details of where a treasure was buried resting on top of it with a sword sticking out of the desk's hardwood surface. There was only bookshelf in her room, with a few books and some plushies of oysters and turtles hiding in the little nooks and crannies of empty space on each shelf. There was a small little prison cell like area with a few tables inside with a fancy pirate like dinner setting hiding inside with a bunch of chairs filled with skull heads on each seat. Lastly to finish off the pirate themed decor, I spotted a clothing rack with some pirate attire and a few swords and fake pistols hanging from wooden hooks inside, almost like Takara was ready for anyone who tried to break into her room with a few white sails hanging like curtains from above head.

"Welcome to me private treasure cove, Kazumi!" Takara grandly gestured, rushing in front of me and showing off all her room's splendor, "What do ye think?"

"It's….umm," I was baffled for words, both amazed and unsure of what words to describe the sailor's room, "V-Very piratey?"

"Aye, I couldn't agree more!" she happily nodded, tipping her pirate's hat at me, "Come with me!"

She grabbed my arm once more, dragging me over to the circular podium in the center of her room, dragging me inside the center of the circle as she held her hand on the steering wheel.

"W-W-What are you d-doing?!" I anxiously asked, scared of what she was planning to do to me.

"Kazumi matey, we be setting sail," she grandly said, pulling the telescope from her holster, "To remedy the ocean blues that plague yer weary mind!"

Before I could say anything, Takara began spinning the wheel and instantly the circular podium I was on started spinning around rapidly. It was like a carousel but pirate themed, which almost seemed fitting for her to have something like this.

"Agh!" I yelped out, gripping onto the edges of the railing tightly as she kept spinning the wheel with an elated smile plastered on her face.

"Round and round the crow's nest," she merrily sang, "Leaving no soul dreary or in need of rest."

After a few rigorous spin cycles, the sailor firmly held on the steering wheel and slowly the crow's nest, or whatever she called it, stopped spinning. My vision blurred and my mind kept spinning around in circles, unable to process what was going on.

"W-Woah…" my body swayed lazily back and forth, my hands trembling and unable to keep steady, "Urp!"

I covered my mouth, preventing whatever bile rose up in my system from spewing out onto the sailor's floor. I'd never felt a rush of adrenaline quite like that before, and it seemed my body felt the same way, from how giddy my movement was. While I didn't really think it helped, it was exhilarating to say the least.

"How was that?" Takara asked, patiently waiting my response, "Did it help?"

"N-Nope…" I bluntly said, nervously shaking and feeling lethargic, "I d-don't feel so g-g-good…"

"Kazumi, ya need to have tougher skin than that if ye want to sail the high seven seas with me!" she pulled out her cutlass, pointing it in the air, "Off with ye, come back when ye have the stomach fer adventure!"

With that, the sailor immediately moved over to her treasure chest, eyeing her treasure excitedly as she began counting it slowly. I sluggishly climbed over the crow's nest, feeling the vertigo of my body tilt back and forth as I grabbed my things and bumped into the walls of her room. I leaned my body against her wall for a few minutes, breathing in slowly as I felt my brain re-adjust itself to its normal state. I quickly made my way out of her room, seeking safety from all the perilous stunts she had in store for me, saving myself from future mental trauma. I closed the door behind my carefully, slumping against the side of the wall and bit by bit, I felt slightly better.

If I didn't have problems sleeping before, then all this excitement and adrenaline sure proved itself to better than any sleeping pill. I wasn't sure what the heck I was doing, nor was sure if all this exercise and fun was actually helping me. I could at least say that it beat laying around doing nothing, that's for sure.

"Greetings Kazumi," a robotic voice came from above, "Are you doing well?"

I looked up from my slumped over state, noticing a small drone like octocopter hovering above me and talking to me.

"O-Oh hey Astatine…" I waved tiredly to the AI copter, "Just a-a little g-g-groggy...w-what about you?

"All my systems and functions are operating at their maximum capabilities!" it said, it's camera surveying the area, "Although I've not found anything out of the ordinary, this facility is quite complex."

So even Astatine, a sentient computer program, was stumped for clues as well. I wasn't a computer technician or any kind of operator who was proficient with gadgets, but if the ethical hacker wasn't able to come up with any escape routes or find any points of interest, then that warrants a lot of suspicion.

"I s-see...did you f-find a-anything else?" I asked them, standing up from my slumped over state.

"Nothing my sensors haven't already picked up on," it stated, its voice sounding even more robotic than normal, "Whoever is in charge of this facility, has a bunch of firewalls blocking access points for me to do proper research or digging."

"W-Welp...t-that sucks.." I sighed deeply, looking at the copter and feeling kind of sorry for the hacker, "Did you c-check out y-your room?"

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you are saying," it said, implying a confused tone, "I've not been made aware of any rooms due to my initial objective or perusing and scouring the main floors."

"O-Oh I s-see…" I worriedly twiddled my fingers together, "It s-seems everyone else g-got a room, I t-think you should h-have one as w-w-well..I think."

Astatine processed this new information, hovering standstill for a few moments before I heard a slight beeping noise coming from inside the copter. I suppose this was news to them.

"Data has been noted, thank you for your assistance, Kazumi," the copter said, "Would you kindly assist me in finding my personal living quarters?"

"S-Sure thing…" I nodded meekly, slightly curious myself as to what the AI's room was like, "I'm not s-sure which one it could b-be but I h-have a feeling it's somewhere h-here…"

I walked down the hallway, looking at both the boys and girls side respectively, noticing a pattern that the males were all next to each other, much like the females. I was grasping at straws, thinking I could help an already bewildered AI find it's room, which only raised more questions. Does Astatine even need a room? Why does a computer program need one? I guess it doesn't seem fair for everyone else to have rooms, and Astatine was stuck wandering the halls aimlessly with not much purpose.

"My sensors have picked up something," the ethical hacker processed the environment, "All points of interest have been redirected to that one door over there."

I turned my attention to where it pointed to and noticed one of the doors on the end of the hallway, specifically one of the girl doors. It took me by surprise, suggesting that Astatine's room was made for another girl, but it kind of made a bit of sense. Considering the amount of people here, there was an uneven number of boys to girls, with there being eleven of us guys and only ten girls here. I think Astatine was brought on to make up for that uneven number, but this is just wild speculation on my part.

The octocopter hovered to the door in question, analyzed it by using an infrared light and began scanning it from top to bottom. Whilst the hacker was doing that, I took the time to soak in the design of the door's appearance. Much like the others, there was a glass plaque, however this one was unique compared to the others I've been to. This plaque had a blacked out pixel figure on the front with a picture of a flash drive off to the side of it, which only piqued my curiosity to no end.

Other than that potential mystery, the door itself was decorated with random numbers, probably computer code in black and white colors, a bunch of colorful rainbow keys of a keyboard stickered everywhere with a computer screen and a green and blue split screen on the monitor of the decal sticker. Using process of elimination, this was definitely Astatine's room, since there weren't many other girl rooms here and this was the only one that seemed slightly out of place.

"Over here Kazumi," Astatine called out to me, "I've detected a scanner like device on the door."

As I walked closer over to the AI's door, what I failed to notice the first time was that there was a small scanner like device above a silver doorknob. It made a lot of sense, considering Astatine's octocopter didn't possess any limbs and there if there wasn't a scanner, this room would have been locked forever unless Astatine asked for help.

"Give me one millisecond," the hacker stated, fiddling with the scanner on the door as a light scanner the device.

"Access granted," a robotic voice said, coming from the door as it opened by itself.

"I-Impressive…" I stared in awe, "T-This w-what t-technology has come to…"

"Shall we?" Astatine turned to me.

"O-Oh right.." I nodded nervously, heading inside the room as Astatine followed closely behind, the door closing by itself automatically.

 **ASTATINE'S ROOM**

Considering how high tech Astatine appeared, I suspected their room to be as impressive as the AI itself. I was still amazed by whoever created it in the first place, they must be some kind of technical genius if that's the case. To say I was expecting the ethical hacker's room to be as outstanding as the other rooms, I guess I kind of got my hopes up a bit too much.

Instead of a traditional room, Astatine's room looked more like some kind of central server room found in most high profile business buildings. There were three rows of about four supercomputers located inside the room, each one decorated with a fun aquatic themed animal sticker on the sides of each one. At the back of the room, there was a rather large computer screen almost as big as the room itself, with lots of hard drives, routers and other computer like devices scattered along a hard granite like countertop. There was only one chair present inside the room, with about tons of cables, wires and connective interfaces for the ethical hacker to connect itself to.

I spotted no semblance of furniture inside their room, which made a lot of sense, since Astatine didn't have a body like the rest of us and didn't need to worry about sleeping and such. There were a few more desks in the room, each one outfitted with about three computers plugged into the outlets in the walls, which seemed quite costly to maintain, especially underwater. There were lots of gadgets, gizmos and other devices I had no idea of the names of and it seemed that there wasn't much anything of note inside the hacker's room that made it stand out from the others. It was a glorified computer room, if anything.

"T-This room is….s-something?" I tilted my head in confusion, "Not m-much of a room...m-more so a l-larger computer r-room.."

"Scanning….." Astatine hovered over the room itself, using its infrared light to peruse the room, "Room is perfectly normal, no sign of any kind of malware, virus or firewall."

"T-That's g-good at least…" I mumbled, wading my way through the dimly lit yet brightly flashing room, "W-What's this?"

I made my way over to the large monitor, taking note of something connected to the large computer, a long white extension cord with some kind of plug input. It looked to be some kind of charging station or connection adapter, not sure if that was the right term for it. It reminded me of a phone charger almost, hooked into the wall itself.

"Pardon me Kazumi, but would you please plug that into my octocopter?" Astatine approached me, presenting a small little plug outlet on the bottom of its surface.

"A-Ah..alright…" I hesitantly said, sticking the plug into the hacker's copter, "D-Done.."

"Thank you….uploading to computer main frame," they said, standing still in the air.

After a few minutes, the octocopter landed on the table, the whirring noise from its propellers stopped moving as the large computer monitor lit up like a Christmas tree. The screen was a lime shade of green as a few lines appeared on screen. Much like the screen in the computer room, Astatine had uploaded its consciousness inside the computer, which was apparent when I saw the same '_' appear on screen.

"A-Astatine?" I curiously eyed the screen, looking around the table for a keyboard, noticing one underneath the giant monitor.

"This works much better," Astatine spoke, the line lips moving on screen, "I appreciate all your help Kazumi," its face formed into that ^w^.

"N-No problem," I typed into the chat log, "Well I should b-be going now…"

"Farewell," Asatine spoke, "I must continue searching this computer's database for more information pertinent to our investigation."

With that all said and done, I pushed in the chair, left the ethical hacker's room and waited for the door to open automatically. As I made my way out into the brightly lit hallway, the door to the AI's room closed behind me, almost slowly at that.

"A-At this point, I'm pretty sure I've been to everyone's room," I thought to myself, pondering on my journey through this wild ride, "Well….almost everyone."

Aside from my room, I'd visited everyone's room, except for his room, Akio's. The idea of what his room looked like intrigued me beyond imagination, however I didn't really think about it until now. The gambler, for better or for worse, has been nothing but antagonistic towards us and I don't think he'd appreciate having random visitors come up and ask to see his room. Out of everyone here, with the exception of Sakai, Akio was one of the few people who made me extremely solicitous and just talking to him was almost intimidating in it's own right. It was almost as if he had this aura of mystery wrapped around him, and everytime you try and talk to him, you're left wondering what's going on inside his brain, despite the fact I just met him.

"What are you doing out here, loser," a deep stoic voice greeted me, "Stalking someone or something?"

I turn to my right, distracted by my thoughts and saw the man himself, Akio. The gambler stood tall and confidently in front of me, his heterochromatic eyes staring invisible daggers at me and his hands stuffed inside his trousers.

"A-A-Akio!?" I yelped out frightenedly, "I-I...uh.."

"If you're not going to get straight to the point, you're not worth my time," he clicked his tongue at me, clearly irritated that I stammered for a response.

"I'm s-sorry...I uh...w-was wondering w-what your r-room looked like is a-all.." I anxiously sputtered those last few words out.

"Are you dense?" he raised an eyebrow at me, clearly unamused with my inane rambling, "Why do you give a shit? Are you spying on me or something?"

"N-No! N-Nothing like that!" I quivered like a lead, unable to filter my thoughts, "I j-just…"

The words refused to come out of my mouth at the time, I was completely shell shocked. The gambler crossed his arms, awaiting a response. What do I even say to someone like him, he was in a league of his own and if looks could kill, I'd be vaporized.

"Let me guess, you're scared to ask me something as basic as 'can I come over,' he smirked smugly, "How cute. Well as much as I didn't want to, you've clearly forced my hand, you win this round."

"H-Huh?" I looked at him nervously, "W-What do you m-mean?"

"Do you always ask such stupid questions all the time?" he face palmed, clearly frustrated with my anxiousness, "Don't make me change my mind, twerp."

"A-Alright!" I gripped my teddy bear tightly, hugging it so hard that the neck almost popped out of the seams.

Instead of acknowledging me, the gambler went on ahead, walking carefree over to his room as if he didn't just coax me into doing what I feared asking him. How did he even do that? It's like he was able to squeeze the words out of me like if I was a tube of toothpaste almost. Unsure of how to proceed, I followed after him, hoping that he didn't yell at me for being too slow.

We eventually made it to his room, which was one of the last doors in the hallway on the boys side. Like the other doors, his had a glass plaque of his pixel avatar on the front, somehow looking making him look slightly less intimidating. His door's decal was plastered with scattered cards of hearts, clubs, spades and diamonds, gambling chips of all colors, bags of money and even a bunch of laughing jokers' on his door frame. His door was very whimsical, which didn't seem to match his very cold demeanor or abrasive attitude.

Akio opened the door, waited for a few moments, before pushing me inside and making me trip into his room. He chuckled at my fall, watching my stuff scatter across his room as he closed the door behind us.

 **AKIO'S ROOM**

My face rested on the cold tiled floor of the gambler's room, feeling as if I was run over by a bullet train as my body ached from the fall. Surprisingly Akio was quite strong, even though he didn't look the part, but it was probably due to his clothing that obscured his physique. I reeled myself together, rubbed my face, feeling the swelling rise as I scoped out his room, trying to take in the scenery while nursing a potential bruise. His room, oddly enough was more elegant in nature than I had originally assumed. Unlike the festive or over the top decorations that the others had in their rooms, Akio's room was more..realistic in terms of decor and furniture.

The floor was carpeted black with dark red squares and white dots in the center on the floor, patterned almost like playing cards in a deck. There were two dark maroon couches with playing card pillows resting on each couch, with a brown hardwood table with a bunch of playing cards and magazines littered on the table. There were a few potted plants in the corners of his room as well as fancy white light fixtures in the shape of hearts on the walls of his room. His bed was a dark brown hardwood with silk black blankets and a red silk pillow resting comfortably on top of it with his initials engraved in gold on the front of his blanket. It almost reminded me of a hotel room in that regard.

There was a round gambling table in the center of his room with about six chairs to it and a bunch of poker chips and dice resting on the table, with a dealer's chair resting smack dab in the center. There were a few electronic slot machines inside his room, about three to be exact and they both lit up like christmas lights and blinked rapidly. There was a blackjack table in another corner of the room, a dart board on the wall of his room, a jukebox with old records playing inside and even a few more electronic card games based off iconic pop culture properties.

Aside from that, his room also had a small drink bar, with a bottle of champagne, two wine glasses and an ice bucket with scoop resting on top of a marble granite countertop. A giant glass jar full of candies and sweets from lollipops, gummies, peppermints, chocolates and other assorted candies rested inside and there was even a coffee machine inside his room, just like in Yumeji's room. Lastly there were a few modern art pieces lined up on the walls of his room as well as card shaped chandelier hung up high on his ceiling and emitting a dim light.

"Is your tiny little brain satisfied?" he snidely asked, walking in front of me and standing over my fallen state.

"It's v-v-very classy…" I muttered out, nervously getting myself up from the floor, "K-Kind of l-like a c-casino…"

"Wow, thanks for pointing out the obvious," he sarcastically said, "Seriously, how long did you get held back?"

Before I could respond back, the gambler ignored me and went over to fix himself a drink by the small drink bar. He dropped two ice cubes inside one of the wine glasses, poured a fizzy clear liquid inside his glass and took it into his gloved hand.

"P-Pardon me…" I worked up the courage to talk to him, "I j-just wanted to apologize f-for earlier…"

He didn't say anything, merely sipped on his drink and watched me talk. Not a word came out of his mouth the entire time, he simply watched, watched me unnecessarily apologize for something that wasn't my fault.

"And uh...I h-hope we c-can w-work together in t-the future.." I bowed my head to him, serving him my humility on a platter as if I were apologizing to my boss or something.

"You really are that pathetically naive aren't you?" he snorted, sipping his drink and resting it on the counter next to him.

"E-Excuse me?" I raised my head up, shocked by his response.

"You seriously think that just because we're all stuck here together, that means I'll just go along with whatever plan you and those retards spit out of your asses," he chuckled smugly, "Best joke I've heard all day."

So much for trying to appease his ego. I observed his demeanor, it was almost scary how calm and collected he looked right now. His narrow eyes stared me down, almost as if I was being interrogated by him and I felt every hair on my body stand straight on its end.

"You know, you might look like an idiot," he walked up to me, a bit too close for comfort, the stench of his cologne permeated the air around us, "But you're a funny guy, your parents must be so proud to have raised such a spineless little cuck like you."

"W-What!?" I recoiled, disgusted by his off handed, spurious comment.

He then turned his back to me, standing up tall and proudly, his hands in his pockets and tilting his head to the side where I saw one of his eyes looking directly back at me. The smug smile on his face contrasted with his smooth words, almost like peanut butter and jelly.

"Word to the wise, don't be so trusting of others," he said coldly, "It's morons like you that get axed off first."

Flabbergasted for what to say, I wanted to reproach him for his rather abrasive comments, but a part of me halted that action. It seemed that whatever I was going to say to him, would only end up as ammo for him the next time I decide to have an interaction with him. I simply grabbed the things that fell on the floor, fixing my backpack to my shoulder and dusting off my clothing.

"W-Where's my-" I searched the room frantically for my teddy bear.

"Looking for this?" Akio said, holding my bear in one of his hands by one of the arms, "Cute little accessory, did your mom buy it for you because she always wanted a daughter?"

The sweat down my back and on my forehead slid down effortlessly, he was doing it again, mocking me. He didn't even seem to care about anything, while his eyes and smug smirk spoke to his character, his body was standstill and ready, almost as if he were egging me on to fight him or something.

"C-Can I have it b-" I asked, before getting slapped in the face by something soft, "Oww…"

"Don't let the door hit you on the way out, Kazumi," he said, uttering my name in a sarcastic tone.

My face red from all the torture its been put through, I hurried myself out of the gambler's room, feeling somewhat claustrophobic from all the vitriolic slander that spewed out of his mouth and hurled my way. The amount of bitter acrimony that radiated from his very formal yet cool presentation, made me almost sick to my stomach. Why was someone like him even here in the first place?

My mind was a warzone, unanswered questions roamed violently amok the heavy gunfire that was the compiling list of reasons not to trust anyone here. On one hand everyone I've met so far seemed to be either hospitable or earnest about having been invite here, despite what Monotide told them. On the other hand, there were a few questionable types that only raised flags of doubt within my mind. Did I perhaps know these people before my memory was taken? Or was this my first time meeting them?

Just as I was about to finish my train of thought, a bell like sound blared over the intercom system. I'd not noticed that there were a bunch of mini TV monitors stuck near the ceilings on the walls of the facility, which was a big surprise to me. An image appeared on screen after the static buzzing on the screen vanished, it was Monotide, the bear from earlier.

The inanely accessorized bear sat on top of a blue lounge chair, sitting in some kind of office like area and sipping on some kind of yellowish orange fruity drink inside a cone shaped wine glass. The bear however wasn't alone, Inuyari was there with him as well, however her position was questionable at best. It seemed that the bear had tied a black dog collar around the purple dog animatronics' neck decorated with a sapphire gem shaped as a heart in the center of the collar, tied up by a chain in another corner of the room.

"Ahem! It is now 9 PM, time for bed my little sea urchins," Monotide squealed chipperly, "I hope you all have swimmingly lovely dreams tonight, until tomorrow, sleep well!"

"W-Wait, n-nighttime!?" I mumbled, looking down at my teddy bear, "W-Was I r-really in t-these rooms f-for that l-long?"

After Monotide's announcement, the program ended as the screen turned off automatically. I didn't know what to make of that new information, nor did I know what to expect. I did have to admit that I was getting sleepy and somnolent after all this exploration. I didn't think I made much progress since arriving here, but getting acquainted with the people living here was probably my best chance at securing a way out, or at the very least ensuring my survival, if what that bear said is true.

I yawned tiredly, rubbing my sleepy eyes and walked over to my room. Now that I had remembered which rooms belonged to what person, plus the gratuitous decorations on each door, finding it was no challenge. I opened the door to my room, entered inside and closed it behind me, taking note of all the toys and childish items inside. I still did a double take when focusing on everything inside. The room itself was akin to a daycare or some kind of preschool setting, much less the kind of room a teenager around my age would be caught dead inside. It raised a lot of questions as to why the person behind everything organized my room like this, what did all mean?

"Hidey ho, Kazumi," a high pitched voice chimed in, "You like the room?"

"Agh!?" I jumped in fright, noticing something bouncing up and down on my bed, "W-What are you d-doing in here?"

The aforementioned Monotide was present in my room, jumping on my bed like a playful toddler and stopping once he saw me enter.

"Just making sure you're habilitated in your new home is all," Monotide stood up, bowing his head, "It's only fair that I, your humble headmaster, make sure that all of my students are attended to before they jump right into snoozeland~"

"H-How...oddly magnanimous of y-you…" a single bead of sweat rolled down the side of my head.

"I know right! I'm such an awesome principal!" he jumped off the bed, waddling his way over to me, "Is there anything you need, my precious little Kazumi?""

"U-Umm...no," I shook my head, slightly creeped out by the bear's mannerisms, "I'm j-just a little t-tired…"

"Alrighty then! I just fluffed your pillows and blankets for you just in case!" the bear grinned, wiping the seaweed on its head, "Well off to bed with you, young man, see you in the morning!"

"H-Hey wai-"

I was about to ask him for more information, but he disappeared without a trace before I could process what he was talking about. Why was he so friendly with me, even though he announced a killing game with us having to kill each other, or whatever that meant? Nothing made any sense.

The lights in my room dimmed, as the sweet lilting music from a music box soothed me into sound slumber. I'd rested my bag on the desk, took of my shoes, sweater, pants and other assortments and slid into the bed I was given. I draped the purple blanket covers over my body as I stared up at the ocean water above.

The water had transitioned from a vividly bright blue, to a pitch dark blue hue with the sounds of water gushing by and the luminescent jellyfish bobbing overhead to give some natural light to the darkened ocean, I was beyond words to describe how beautiful it was. I slowly closed my eyes, feeling the heavy weight on my eyelids force them shut as I lay my head on the fluffy pillow underneath. I snuggled up inside my blanket and instantly fell asleep.

It was true serendipitous tranquility…..wasn't it?

* * *

 **A/N** : Hello hello hello everyone and welcome back to another long overdue chapter from one of my many infrequent stories XD. I hope you all are doing well and it's been a while, long time no see.

Before you say anything, I know what you might be thinking, am I freaking crazy? Yes. Was this chapter needlessly long? Yes. Is it deserved? Maybe. But I have a reason for making this chapter as painstakingly long as it is. I apologize if this chapter is a bit clunky and awkward at times, but bare with me, it's just a silly little mini long chapter XD.

I've been a bit busy with my personal life and I've been binge writing this chapter for a few weeks, hoping to get it done on time for you guys, but needless to say it was a long arduous journey. I'd planned on making this chapter into two ones, but given how long this story has been in limbo and how I've been putting it off for a while, I thought, why not combine all twenty two rooms into one giant chapter, that way we get into the meat of the story quicker. Yes I know it's a lot to digest, but I promise you guys it was worth it, at least you all get to have something to binge this week whilst waiting for other stories XD.

I've also been taking this time to attend to my mental health as well, it's been a wild ride for me these past few months and the break I took was well deserved, I've been making OC to keep my mind fresh and I've been keeping myself busy with video games and the like. So just because I disappear for a month, doesn't mean I've forgotten about you guys, I'm too adamant and proud to just drop my stories without warning. Much like Hope's Lie, if I'm in the need for a mini hiatus, I will let you know in advance when that is taking place and I will address it as such if you have any questions for me in the PM's.

That being said, I've nothing else to report other than this very long chapter, I hope it's alright. You guys have no idea how long this took me, I'm dying inside but I am sure I'm still sane, at least I think XD. Other than that, I hope you all enjoyed it and if you have any further questions for me, please refer to my PM's as such. To the creators whose OC got rooms, if you would like to make any changes to any of their rooms, please feel free to let me know as soon as possible, I'm always open to suggestions.

But for now, I hope you all are doing well, I hope you all liked the chapter. Feel free to leave a review claiming I'm a mad man down below XD. Before I forget I would like to promote a few SYOC stories that are currently accepting OC at the moment. I highly recommend you check them out when you guys have the time X3.

 **Danganronpa: Remnants Of My Heart - my fourth story and insert shameless self promo.**

 **Danganronpa: The Pitiful Plague Called Innocence - RioA**

 **Fogbound Castaways - Sharkeye**

I hope you all have a wonderful day, night, holiday or whatever it is your celebrating and I will see you all in the next upload or whenever I decide to post next. I love you guys so much and thank you all for supporting me and my stories, it means the world to me that you all like my cringy writing XD.

Happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alive, I wish you all well in the upcoming week and hope to see you again hopefully in April. Bye bye!


	6. Chapter 1: What Lies Beneath The Tide

**Editor: RioA**

 **Pre A/N** : There's a poll on my profile for future FTE events for this story, so make sure to vote for who you want an FTE of.

* * *

 _"Baby….whiny…...insufferable…..bratty…..no good…..lying…...ingrate….."_

 _"Weak….childish…..can't…...help…..yourself…...coward…"_

 _"I…..wish you….would…...die."_

* * *

My body shivered intensely, with every fiber and sinew inside tingling with a chilling sensation that was almost foreign to me. I nestled myself inside the swaddling purple blankets of my temporary new bed, savoring the cozy warmth for as long as I could, for however long I could muster. I'd not slept this good ever since waking up in this strange facility, and it sure was better than sleeping on the cold, hard tiled floor, that's for sure.

I felt the faint light peer in from the transparent skylight above, tickling my eyes open as I squeezed them shut to shield myself from the invading sunlight, covering my ears from the gushing sounds of the ocean water above. After a few minutes of hiding inside the covers, a loud ringing noise echoed throughout my room, jolting me out of my sleepy daze almost immediately without warning.

"Ahem! It is now 9AM," Monotide's grating high pitched voice spoke over the intercom, "Good morning my precious little seashells~ Time for you all to start your very first day here at Aqua Peaks' Academy!"

Before the bear could finish his sentence, another voice chimed into the announcement, halting his words, as some annoyed mumbling came from the bear himself. The purple dog mascot, I believe she was called Inuyari, jumped in and interrupted Monotide's morning announcement.

"You all heard him, so rise and shine everyone," Inuyari squealed excitedly, "You wouldn't want to sleep in like a bunch of guppies, now would you?"

"Hey! Hands off the mic, bitch!" Monotide screeched, as an audible kick was heard with what sounded like a crashing noise. It seemed that Inuyari was punched into a nearby wall and made a huge dent in the framework. "Anyways, that's all for now everyone, peace out!"

"Ugh...d-do it again…daddy," Inuyari's weak moans were heard, before it got cut off by a static noise.

The animatronics' voices disappeared as I unravelled my bed covers, tossing them forward as I raised my body upwards from the cozy confines of the soft mattress. I sleepily blinked a few times, cracked some of my stiff joints, stretching both my arms and legs and loosening any cricks in my neck. I'd forgotten how unhealthy and sickly my pale skin looked when in natural ocean lighting, but I didn't pay it much mind as I leaned my skinny legs against the edge of the bed frame and slouched over, savoring what little sleep was left inside my mind, with my messy raven hair casting a dim shadow on the floor for a brief moment.

I shook my head a little, getting an extra ounce of energy into my system as I rested my feet on the freezing cold floor. A slight chill ran up my spine as I rubbed my shoulders and rushed over to the nearby closet sluggishly to grab my clothes. I'd noticed that the bedrooms didn't have any kind of personal bathroom or lavatory available for use, which probably meant we had to do most of our showering or bathing in the public bathrooms out in the hallway. I suppose that whoever ran this facility didn't really account for people with privacy complaints, but if this was a research facility, then it would make a lot more sense for there to be communal bathrooms for the workers and researchers, than investing money in individual ones.

"I d-don't smell t-that bad...at least I d-don't think so." I sniffed my armpits, noticing some sweat stains on the clothes I wore the other day, "Oh...right, n-nevermind."

Thinking it over for a short second, I did notice a few doors that I failed to explore earlier out in the hallway, so I decided to check those out after getting ready. With each lethargic step, I grabbed a fresh pair of new clothes from the closet, still wearing the old clothes from yesterday, and exited my bedroom. I was hoping to at least find some kind of shower room, if there were any to begin with, so I crossed my fingers and ventured outside into the cold, mysterious hallway.

I closed my bedroom door behind me, left my room, coming face to face with the other bedrooms and searched around for any kind of bathroom or shower room. I'd heard a couple of voices coming from the main dining room nearby, but I wanted to freshen up first before anything else. I passed by each room, walking aimlessly around the corridors, until I came across a set of doors; a blue and a pink one, much similar to the ones I saw yesterday in another corridor.

"H-Hopefully this is t-the right one," I mumbled to myself, heading into the blue door, "P-Please let there not b-be any m-more surprises like y-yesterday."

As I entered inside, twisting the door handle anxiously hoping that it was a bathroom, I was pretty much right on the money with that notion and was shocked by what I saw. It looked synonymous to the other bathrooms in this aquatic facility, except not only did they have toilet stalls, sinks, urinals and even those same fancy sea shaped hand soaps, but it was much different this time around.

There were about three shower stalls inside the room, each with wide square shower booths with a wide glazed glass door in the front to prevent people from peeking in. Inside each shower stall were two bottles of shampoo and conditioner each, both smelling faintly of citrus tangerines and vanilla beans. On the walls, there were white soap holsters with dark blue fish shaped soaps resting inside, alongside a few colorful body washes in clear plastic bottles, that came in silky pastel colors such as purple, blue, pink and orange. The metal shower head was shaped like an octopus with the ends of its legs positioned so that the water could hit you from all sides, with three buttons that allow you to choose from both cold, hot and room temperature water. Finally, there were a bunch of colorful bathing towels all lined up on top of each other on a metal shelf rack next to the showers, each with funny cartoon sea creature animal prints on each design such as angelfish, sharks, dolphins, starfish and many more creatures I wasn't familiar with or knew the names off of the top of my head.

"W-Wow...this f-f-facility has e-everything.." I gasped, awestruck by the fancy, yet gimmicky, presentation of everything, "T-Time to shower...g-gosh I feel s-so sticky from all t-the sweat."

I grabbed one of the blue towels from the nearby racks, disrobed out my old sweaty clothes and discarded them on the floor, resting my fresh new clothes on one of the metal railings next to the showers, stepping inside and closing the door behind me. I pressed the room temperature button, as crystal clear water poured down from the shower head above and splashed against my pale skin. I then took the next few minutes, relaxing inside, to soak in the warm, welcoming waters from above. I grabbed the soap, lathered it a little and scrubbed my pale skin clean. I rinsed out the germs from my skin and began putting shampoo and conditioner in my hair, scrubbing my scalp and washing it out vigorously as small bubbly soap suds dripped onto the creme tiled floor.

"A-Aah…" I sighed contently, embraced by the gentle waters, "J-Just what I n-needed…"

After a few minutes, I turned off the shower, pressing the button again as the water stopped running and dripped on the wet floor. I shook off the excess water from my body, opened the door and wrapped the blue towel around me, wiping my skin thoroughly and drying myself off rather quickly. After I was fully clean, I grabbed the fresh clothes from the rack and began getting dressed behind one of the hidden corners, just in case someone came in at the last minute. I was fully clothed, headed over to the mirrors by the sink and stared back at my sickly appearance. The haircut from yesterday made my hair look neater than it was before, but my slightly baggy eyes indicated something else entirely, I was indeed what they called a hot mess.

"Good morning Kazumi!" a voice appeared from behind me, "Did you sleep well?"

Frightened by the sudden voice, I turned around and saw someone standing behind me. I'd not heard the door open, so I knew it couldn't have been one of the guys and I knew that none of the girls would enter the boys' room unannounced, so it could only be one of them. To my surprise, I saw Monotide, standing there as I stared down at him, the mascot snickering with delight at my surprised reaction.

"W-What!?" I jumped, nearly slipping over and hitting my head against the hard countertop, "H-How did you g-get in here?"

"Nevermind the silly little things like that," the monochromatic bear chuckled, "It's just my little morning routine to check up on you all, there's no need to fret."

I leaned my body up against the sink as the bear waddled around the shower room floor, nearly sliding on the fresh water droplets leftover from the shower. I knew this bear was weird, but I never took it for someone who cared about everyone's well being, considering he wanted us to be in some elaborate game show, or whatever he called it.

"W-What do you w-want?" I asked him nervously, my hands trembling against the cold countertop.

"Cutting to the chase are we, good. If you must know, you and the others are in for a special treat indeed!" the bear grinned from ear to ear schemingly, "I almost forgot, here you go."

Before I could respond back to the bear, he'd pulled something from behind his back, which made me question if he actually had pockets behind him or if it was some kind of elaborate magic trick.

"W-What are y-you?" I asked, before getting presented with something, "Is t-that?"

"Yep yep, here you go buddy!" the bear presented me with my teddy bear that I'd forgotten inside my room, "Wouldn't want you to forget this lil guy, now do you."

I shakily accepted my teddy bear from Monotide, noticing it's purple ribbon and soft brown skin touch my fingers delicately. I'd forgotten how safe I felt when holding it by my side, it was like the next best thing to a best friend, except it didn't talk back to me or really reassure me that everything was going to be okay. I considered it more of a surrogate friend, rather than an actual coping mechanism.

"W-Why are you b-being so n-nice to me?" I asked him nervously, unsure of what he had planned.

"Why not? I mean, does me trying to make everyone here comfortable warrant such crude suspicion?" the moss covered bear tilted his head, confused by my words as if I were speaking a different language, "Don't be such a spoil sport, Kaz~"

While his design was overall childish and rather droll, I couldn't help but feel nothing but dread every time he opened his mouth. The foreboding sense of weariness lingered over me like a dark shadow when talking with the bear, almost as if something innate was telling me not to trust him or something. I mean why would I, does it even matter if I do? So far, nothing indicated that this bear was all that friendly, given his rather coarse greeting and first impressions he imprinted on us.

"I will see you later, my little urchin!" the bear smiled, disappearing into thin air like a trained escape artist, "Don't drop the soap now, hehehe~"

After that little exchange, I turned towards the mirror, resting my teddy bear on the side of the sink as I gazed sleepily at it's reflective surface. I'd only just woken up, and I'm immediately reminded of the lingering questions that still plagued my mind since yesterday. I had forgotten all about escaping this strange place, once I got comfortable in my room, but now that I've had a refreshing shower I can safely say that the drive to find a way out was reinvigorated by the bear's creepy actions and weird mannerisms. I exited the bathroom, grabbed my teddy bear and secured the owl backpack around my shoulders and closed the door behind me, letting the warm steam dissipate as it escaped into the hallway. I'd noticed that the halls were still empty, as I made my way down to the dining room where I'd heard people conversing and chatting with each other earlier.

"T-Today is a n-new day…" I steeled myself, looking down at my feet before heading through the double doors, "A f-fresh start….t-time to see this through…"

As I ventured through the doors, the smell of delicious food wafted through the air like a pleasant aromatic fragrance. My senses were greeted with a delightful sensation, that filled me with a calm mind and somewhat clear thoughts, almost like a trance if anything. It was like waking up in the morning to your mother or father making you breakfast and watching as the sizzling aroma danced around in the air like a graceful ballerina.

I noticed that almost everyone was inside the dining room, but what took my attention first and foremost was the buffet of food resting on a row of tables. Whoever had arranged this massive feast, had all the food resting on top of a long line of tables with aquatic themed blue table clothes underneath with paper plates that had cartoon sea animals imprinted on the designs, alongside plastic cutlery that rested neatly inside folded white napkins.

The food, from what I could see, was mainly breakfast oriented, which made the most sense considering it was early in the morning, or whatever time Monotide said it was since it was hard to tell if it was night or day due to the entire facility being underwater. For the most part, I had believed it to be the morning, since there was a faint light peering in from above the skylight and the bright lights shining inside the dining room illuminated the view, almost blinding me upon entering.

The food itself, was so vast and diverse, it was almost hard for me to remember what was what at first. There were three different kinds of quiche; one with meat, the other with veggies and the last being plain cheese, each one was baked like a cupcake and was stacked on top of each other like a pyramid and wrapped in a golden brown crust. On another table there were crispy, baked egg danishes, with gooey white eggs and yellow cheesy centers in the middle with green onions and bacon bits sprinkled on top of each one. There were large quantities of bacon, all cooked and sizzling on top of a large white plate with crumbs resting on the sides of the tables with bright yellow omelettes with creamy cheese resting next to the bacon platter.

There were three different types of croissants; plain buttermilk ones, savory ham and cheese sandwiches and chocolate covered cream ones, with the lingering scents invading my nose almost immediately. There were flatbread chicken and ham paninis with lettuce and grilled cheese resting on other plates with what looked to be some kind of white dipping sauce in little plastic containers to each one. Lastly for the savory foods, there were egg and cheese souffles, with brown crusts and yellowy white layers.

For the more sugary and sweet breakfast items, there was no shortage of that either. Stacks of waffles piled on top of each, with fresh strawberries and blueberries plating the bottom of the large silver platter, with golden brown syrup bleeding off the edges of each waffle. There were chocolate crepes with freshly cut strawberries neatly placed on top of each one, with a white powdery substance dusted on top, most likely powdered sugar. For the pancake lovers, there was a separate platter stacked high like a tower, with golden yellow butter skating on the surface of each pancake with small syrup or jam packets resting inside a woven yellow basket with a red and white checkered blanket inside.

Finally there were the drinks, and like with breakfast, there was a wide variety of beverages to choose from. There were four coffee machines on another table, each one had a different coffee flavor, such as black, french vanilla, hazelnut cream and even hot chocolate as well. Next to that, there were clear glass juice dispensers with ice cubes floating inside the watery mixtures and the flavors were orange, apple, grapefruit and mango. Of course, who could forget the classic drink that was water, which was inside a large plastic cooler with a nozzle dispenser and a bunch of plastic cups stacked on top of each other and resting next to the drink stand.

"W-What a lovely s-s-spread…" I nervously mumbled, amazed by the buffet arrangements, "I w-wonder who m-made these?"

"Yo Kaz, morning," a voice greeted me, "Sleep well?"

I turned my attention away from the breakfast buffet and noticed Sato hailing me out from a table, with the others conversing and eating their food casually, as if it were another mundane day to them.

As I walked over to him, I took note of the others in the room and noticed most of them forming their own little cliques and friend groups, or lack thereof for certain people. Call me paranoid, but I think that everyone acting this friendly right off the bat is a bit nerve wracking if anything. It could be that most of them knew each other before coming here, however I had no memory of that, nor did I really know who was who in the grand scheme of things, so I was just making wild assumptions at the moment. I felt like that one loner in school, looking around the cafeteria for an open spot to sit down on, devoid of many people sitting closeby. I think it's the anxiety talking, but I really didn't feel all that comfortable talking with some of them in particular.

For starters, Lou, Wayne, Takara and Terrence were all seated at one table, clearly the more expressive and playful outliers in this entire cast of characters. Lou and Wayne both indulged themselves in their breakfast, with the roleplayer playfully arguing with the knitter over which is better; pancakes or waffles from the look of things. Lou mischievously teased Wayne for his unusually high stack of pancakes and he kept pouting like a grumpy child, as both were flooded with dripping golden syrup that puddled at the edges of their respective plates.

Terrence acted as the mediator between the two, while Takara was too busy flinging her croissant scraps across the room as she stabbed one of the plastic knives into her stack of pancakes and began carving them into shapes. The sailor didn't seem all that interested in having a civil conversation, as the communicator tried to keep his attention affixed on the two younger ones while also keeping the crazy pirate at bay.

Vivienne, Iena, Stella, Yoshikazu and Torakusu all sat together at a separate table, but their chat was far more tame and alot more mature compared to the others. Vivienne and Iena seemed very engaged in their conversation, mumbling something to each other and using a lot of jargon that I wasn't familiar with, as the two girls seemed to be enjoying the others company. The judge munched on a buttermilk croissant while the trader cut her panini sandwiches into triangular pieces and dipped each one into a white sauce container.

Stella, Torakusu and Yoshikazu, in some weird manner, acted like the heads of the table or the adults of the group. Despite Tora's flirtatious and over the top advances, Stella didn't seem to flinch and kept talking to Yoshikazu, as she ate one of the danishes on her plate. The sniper stubbornly pecked at his bacon as if he were a grumpy cat scorned by his owner and the pub manager and auctioneer were both discussing something intensely that I couldn't overhear.

Of course like with any social group, Lev and Aphrodite both shared a table to themselves, as if they were the popular preppy students of the group. Both clad in their very bright attire, the two were laughing at each others' quips and jokes and they seemed to compliment each other very well, almost like a match made in heaven. The fashion designer was gesturing and poking fun at the others outfits, while the pageant queen chuckled in response. From the looks of it, she only ate a bowl of freshly cut fruit, while he dug into a crispy veggie quiche while the two gossiped contently.

I did notice a lot of people who ate by themselves and to be honest, I don't think they'd enjoy the other's company as much as I thought. Akio, Sakai, Ushio, Kimiya and Moriko were the stragglers of the breakfast bunch and they all seemed to be in their own little individual worlds, seemingly at peace in their own ways.

Sakai sat by himself, which was funny since I thought he'd hang out with Lev and Aphrodite, but I cared not to know what he was really thinking. He was delicately eating each crepe on his plate as if it were his last meal, gently dabbing a napkin on his face after three or two bites of his food. The hair stylist then looked around the room, noticed me enter and bore a very smug grin that only filled me with unease. I didn't know what his problem was, nor why he took such a deep interest in causing me trouble, but I decided not to interfere with his meal and leave him be by standing as far away from him as humanly possible.

Moriko was probably the strangest person I'd ever met, but instead of eating with the others, she spent her time eating egg souffles in a shady area of the dining room, away from the others. I had no idea if the doll maker was putting on a persona or was genuinely convinced of her "darkness" mentality, but at least she was sticking to her guns and going all out, I suppose. She didn't seem like a bad person, but talking with her was very overwhelming and I always felt skittish around her, as if she could spazz out on me at any second due to one wrong, unconscious move. After the incident with one of her dolls from yesterday, I didn't want to make her even more mad by striking up a conversation, so I left her alone.

Kimiya grumpily ate a lot of meat, with his plate stacked to the brim with bacon, with two ham and cheese paninis at the side, caked in the creamy white sauce. He didn't seem to want to socialize, but from the dark circles underneath his eyes and his rather loud gnashing of the bacon bits, I didn't want to incur his wrath further. The ice sculptor didn't even look around the room, but was more affixed to his food if anything, I guess he needed a distraction or something, but from the looks of it, he didn't seem too keen on Iena giving him another lecture over his dietary habits.

Ushio too was also eating by herself, but she opted for a few pancakes and a fruit salad with whipped cream on top. I didn't peg her for having a sweet tooth, she seemed very distant and snappy since yesterday, but today she looked at peace if anything. The small smile on her face after she bit into a fresh strawberry was almost foreign to see, given the omnipresent frown on her face. The surfer was busy eating her food, so I didn't feel like ruining her good mood either.

Akio's table was spread like a fancy five star meal. Everything was plated elegantly, as it seemed as though he took a sample of everything from the menu but with decently sized proportions. The gambler ate some danishes and pretended to care about what the others were doing as he sipped his creamy brown coffee. I still felt iffy around him, very unpleasant vibes radiated from his table and I could tell that getting involved with him, much like with Sakai, would only be to my detriment. He was like a dictator eating a large feast by himself, no one was allowed to get near him or talk to him, out of fear of being executed for opening their mouths.

Lastly, I perused the room for Astatine before noticing that the hacker was hovering above everyone and not moving an inch from their spot. It's almost as if they were a blimp from above, watching us from below as if we were tiny ants to them. The ethical hacker seemed to be scanning the room, so I didn't want to bother them and I figured being an AI, they didn't need to worry about hunger either.

"Mworning bwuddie," Drago sloppily greeted me, stuffing his face with eggs and bacon strips voraciously, "Gwab a seet."

"G-Good morning…" Nomi mumbled out, anxiously eating her chocolate crepes with tiny baby sized nibbles, removing her face mask slightly.

Sato, Dragomir, Nomi, even Yumeji were all sitting at the same table and eating breakfast casually. I noticed that there was an open seat next to the oneirologist and the lifeguard and I nervously rested my rear on the soft velvet cushion and rested my teddy bear in my lap.

"Morning Kaz," Yumeji sleepily nodded, sipping some of her coffee as the sharp aroma infiltrated my nose, "Have any good dreams last night?"

"G-Good morning e-everyone…" I anxiously greet them, gripping my pants creases tightly, "N-Not really….I've b-been tossing and t-turning around a lot…."

"Is everything alright?" Sato asked, I noticed he only wore his left glove, while the other was removed to help hold his fork better, but I didn't pry on it further, "Was it another one of your panic attacks?"

"N-No...nothing like t-that…" I shook my head timidly, too afraid to confide more details about what I've been dreaming about, "J-Just a bit j-j-jittery is all…"

"Hmmm I see…." Yumeji hummed suspiciously.

"Maybe all ya need is to eat something," Drago pondered on it briefly, before standing up tall like the mountain man he was, "I'll be right back, don't go anywhere."

"O-Ok…" I nodded meekly, unsure of what he was going to do.

"So what's up Kaz?" Sato broke the ice first with some idle chatter, "Did you find anything interesting while exploring this place yesterday?"

"Not r-really…" I stared down at my teddy bear, thinking on it further, "A-Aside from s-seeing e-everyone's rooms….."

"Well... that kind of sucks," Nomi bluntly said, raising her mask to eat a small piece of crepe before swiftly letting it go, "So I guess we've all not found anything noteworthy."

"Don't say that, Nomi," Sato turned to the gardener, somewhat displeased with her pessimistic response, "I'm sure we'll all find a way out of this place, one way or the other, we just need to go at it day by day is all."

"I'm sorry…." she apologized, not pressing the issue further as she sipped a glass of ice cold lemon water.

Watching everyone talk so freely and friendly like that made me envious, even if I didn't really have much of anything to say. I knew that if I said something, then I'd get drowned out by someone else's voice or if I did say something, then it might come out the wrong way or too stuttery. I just kept my mouth shut the entire time, not before something dropped on the table in front of me suddenly.

"Here ya go Kaz, dig in!" Drago returned to the table, carrying a rather large plate of food and presenting it to me without any warning.

"E-Eek!" I yelped out, surprised by the food I was given, "O-Oh my…"

Words could not describe how much food was on my plate. Stacks of pancakes with waffles caked in between each one with lots of syrup and butter glistening against the soft golden batter. Not only that, but the eggs were large and runny from the yolk in the center and bits of bacon resting underneath the eggs like a mattress and a very large glass of apple juice with ice cubes at the side with a blue bendy straw next to it, complete with a plastic fork and knife. I felt like a child being spoiled by his parents, except I barely knew these people and they're already so hospitable towards me, as if they were trying to butter me up for something.

"Wow, that's a lot of food!" Sato's eyes almost bulged out of his sockets when he gazed upon the amount the zoologist gave me.

"Hahaha I know right," he laughed proudly, his arms akimbo and resting his beefy hand on my back, "This little one is very scrawny and frail, he'll need all the protein and fiber he can get."

"I-I see...t-thanks D-Drago…" I thanked him, too afraid to refuse his gift as I nervously eyed the knife and fork and shakily grabbed them from the table.

Was it the massive abundance of food that was intimidating me? Or was it the idea that someone I've never met has neatly plated it with such care, that I fear he might have poisoned it without me noticing. Was this some kind of reverse psychology that I wasn't aware of? Or was I simply overthinking things?

"Gee golly, I didn't know Kazzie had four stomachs," someone remarked, jokingly giggling as well, "I guess you're one of those people."

I look behind me, almost dropping the utensils in my hand from fright to see Wayne eyeing my breakfast with doe wide eyes like a cartoon character. The knitter sat in his seat with his body pressed against the back of his chair while Lou looked on as well.

"Oh y-yeah it's p-pretty big…" I laughed nervously, sweatdropping at the same time.

"Just remember not to force yourself to eat, alright" Stella heard the commotion and inserted her piece, "We can always keep the leftovers for later."

"S-Sure…." I noticed, nodding to the pub manager's advice.

I gripped my fork tightly, sweat building up on my palms as I cut into a pancake slowly, watching as the syrup danced against the brown cake's exterior elegantly and ate it.

"M-Mmm!" I remark ecstatically, feeling the gooey warmth enter my mouth, "S-S-So good…."

"Hahahaha! Glad to see you like it, Kaz," Sato ruffled my hair, as if I were his younger sibling, "Anyway, has anyone found anything since Monotide's announcement yesterday?"

Before I could get a second bite, the lifeguard brought the cheery atmosphere to a halt as the others turned to our table and heard his question. I paused for a moment, before putting the next waffle slice into my mouth as the others talked in the meantime about what was going on.

"It seems our search was just as fruitless," Yoshikazu was the first to announce his findings, "We didn't find anything else besides our rooms, aside from one storage closet."

"There were no secret hatches or escape routes inside though," Iena added on, her displeasure strewn across her face, "So I guess that was a bust as well."

"We did find more bathrooms, if that helps?" Terrence joined in, "I know it's not much, but there were shower rooms, but no exits…"

"Well duh, of course there's none," Sakai rolled his eyes, not surprised by the others words, "You people shouldn't expect shit like that to be easy to find after all."

"Do you really have to be so negative about it, though?" Lou called him out, "I mean we did do more work than you, after all," she giggled smugly.

Sakai didn't respond back, but continued to eat his breakfast nonchalantly, he didn't look pissed but his subsequent fork stabs into his crepes, seemed audibly louder than before.

"Petty fights aside," Vivienne wheeled her wheelchair around to face us, "There's a kitchen near the bar, but that's all we found."

"The pantry and shelves were loaded with food and cans," Stella sounded impressed, "I never expected a facility like this to have so much food at its disposal."

"Well in times of distress it's always best to stock up," Torakusu agreed, "As a soldier, my advice would be to ration as much food as possible," the sniper detailed, "Also we need to stay together and keep warm as well~"

"And here we go again….." Ushio grumbled, saying her piece before turning away from the group.

"Really, that sucks, no one has found a way out yet?" Sato frowned, "Well hopefully today will be better than yesterday."

"Ugh, can you all shut up!" a disgruntled voice angrily shouted out, "God, a man can't enjoy his breakfast without all this annoying white noise in the room."

I looked behind me and saw Akio finishing his meal resting the utensils on his empty plate, wiping his face with the napkin that was tucked underneath his lap and tossing it next to said dirty plate.

"Dude, what the fuck is your problem?" Kimiya raised an eyebrow, a lot calmer in response than usual, "You have a stick up your ass or something?"

"I wouldn't expect a third rate, sweaty, hack job sculptor like you to understand," the gambler retorted at the ice sculptor, who at this point was ready to lunge at him at any second judging from his tightly gripped fists, "I'm saying your plan to find a way out is shit at best."

"And tell me darling," Lev joined the conversation, crossing his leg over his other one and sipping what looked to be iced tea, "What do you propose we do? I don't suppose you have a better idea then, of course you're a smart man aren't you Aki, do you have something else in mind."

The gambler glared at the fashion designer, shaking his head before addressing Sato's words. It seemed that Lev had struck a nerve with his sassy remarks, as Aphrodite morally supported him by snapping her fingers.

"I don't need to play nice with any of you," he simply said, "But seeing this half assed attempt at survival and teamwork is really boring and grating to hear honestly."

"Arrr, ye best be not planning to run a rig on us," Takara hopped out of her seat and pointed a finger at him, "Ye best be ready to walk the plank, if you ain't gonna carry ya weight!"

"Nothing of the sort," he regained his composure immediately, "Just thought I should mention that you all need to think practically and logically is all."

"I think we should be working together instead of picking fights with each other," Drago seemed fed up with all the commotion, "Like with any good ecosystem, if there's no harmony then everything goes nuts."

"Way to state the total obvious," Sakai stifled some laughter and nearly choking on his drink.

"Ooh I learned something new today!" Wayne happily bopped in his seat energetically.

"No matter…." Yumeji yawned once more, "In time we'll find something…"

"That's very wishful thinking…" Nomi quietly commented, "Is it even possible to get out of here?"

"The darkness surely intends for us to never find the sanctity of the light," Moriko emerged from her shadowy resting spot, "Sanctuary is far beyond our reach….forever lost and forever a distant memory."

"What the fuck are you smoking?" Kimiya side eye glanced at the doll maker, "And where can I get some? I'm probably going to need it after today."

"She be smoking more than just that ashy gunpowder laddie," Takara chuckled, playing along to Moriko's whims.

"You two act like children," Vivienne clicked her tongue in an amused manner, "Leave the talking to the adults."

"The fuck you say to me?!" his neck swooshed to the trader's direction, before noticing the judge staring at him with disapproving glares and backing down, "Tch, whatever."

"God, this negative vibe is killing my super organic keto diet," Aphrodite snorted, "I didn't even get to enjoy my conversation with Levvie," she says, not having touched her bowl of fruit at all throughout this entire debacle.

"Umm did you even touch your food at all?" Tora noted, sweatdropping, "Such a gorgeous maiden shouldn't starve herself, I can help feed you, if you'd like!"

"Eww, get away from me, weirdo!" she scorned his overly flirtatious advance, as he slinked into his seat out of shame.

"Come on guys, can't we just talk about this for one moment as a group," Sato tried to please others, while also calming them down, "Let's just rationally think about this and-"

"Ugh boring!" a high pitched snicker could be heard from the other side of the room, "You guys sure do love to get your hopes up, only for them to get shredded to pieces, don't ya."

Before the rest of us could finish our important, yet somewhat heated conversation, Monotide's voice interrupted us mid sentence as we all turned our attention towards the center stage. We saw the moss covered bear do a little dance on center stage, as if he were some kind of demented hula dancer and then he turned, snickering at us and watching him awkwardly as he made an embarrassed face, trying to play off coy and innocent.

"W-Where did y-you come f-from?" I asked out loud, shocked by his sudden appearance, "H-How did-"

"Oh Kazzie, you're such a precious little bean, aren't ya," Monotide snickered, pointing his paw at me teasingly, "But you're too clueless and naive to be asking such pointless questions like that, be a good little boy and shut your mouth."

"Hey! There's no need to be so rude to him," Stella reproached the bear, also shocked by his sudden appearance as she finished her breakfast and was cleaning the bar with a half wet towel, "I was actually wondering the same thing myself."

"I think being rude to him is the last thing that we should be worried about, don't you think," Lev remarked, a disappointed sigh escaped from his mouth.

"Any hoo, how did you all sleep last night," Monotide asked, his paws behind his back and leaning over, with bright pink blush forming on his face, "Swimmingly well, I'd imagine!"

"You didn't gather us all here just talk pleasantries now, did you," Sakai stared at the bear, unenthused by his coy attitude, as the hair stylist continued eating his strawberry crepes nonchalantly, "Just get on with it already."

"Ouch, you always cut straight to the point, don't you Sakkie," Monotide gasped, feigning ignorance in his tone, "I'm rather offended you'd assume that, I'm just trying to be a good host is all."

"Fuck that noise, I'm not buying that host shit for a second," Kimiya interjected, clearly agitated with the trite commentary as he stood up from his seat, "I demand answers now! Tell me why the fuck we're here and who the hell are you! Come out and face me like man, you coward!"

"Kimiya, I think you shouldn't agitate the bear like you did last time," Tora warned the ice sculptor, putting his hands out in front of him, trying to appease him, "Wouldn't want a repeat of before now would we?", the sniper nervously looked around the room, "Plus you're scaring the ladies."

"That bomb explosion certainly did nearly give me a heart attack," Terrence added, worriedly eyeing Kimiya as well, "Let's just hear what he has to say first before jumping the gun again, alright?"

"Tch! Whatever," Kimiya clicked his tongue, his audible annoyance could be heard from the other side of the room as he sat back down, crossing his arms in defiance.

"You see Kimmy, why can't you be as obedient and willing like the others here," Monotide sneered at the clearly grumpy green haired man, "I'd love to continue this positively thrilling chat, but the show must go on! Inuyari, make yourself useful and give them the goods!"

"Aye aye, hubby!" the purple dog mascot appeared from behind the stage curtains, skipping merrily to Monotide's side, "Gimme one second! I'm still trying to figure out how to use this technology."

The dog pressed a few buttons on the pad like device in her hand as a random TV screen appeared from above the stage. It was a wide screen television that looked brand new judging from the shiny glean and I assumed that the device in Inuyari's hand was like a universal remote or something. I sat on the edge of my seat, nervously clutching my teddy bear as I anticipated something terrible was going to occur if we watched whatever it was he was presenting to us.

"What are you planning exactly, bear?" Sato stared suspiciously at the mascots, fiddling with the crabstick in his mouth, "You better not be up to no good."

"I think it's fairly obvious, don't you think Mr. Lifeguard or are your ears clogged up by all the sand from your time on the beach," Akio smirked, leaning against a nearby wall, farther from the rest of the group, "I assume he's going to start off this Killing Game of his with the very first motive, or so I gather."

I turned to the gambler, confused by his choice of words, unsure of what he meant by that and froze in my seat. The confident smile on his face, coupled with the shifty way he was moving around the dining hall, only worried me further. It's as if he read the bear's mind and knew for certain what he was going to say before the rest of us could surmise an answer. His multi-colored eyes gazed blankly around the room, then trained back at the mascot duo almost intensely with a smug grin plastered on his face.

"Ever the perceptive little wannabe gangster, Aki," Monotide chuckled, amused by the gambler's scarily accurate assumption, "But yes, I am going to present you all with the very first motive to get this exciting Killing Game started!"

"I'm getting chills just from hearing about it," Inuyari chimed in, still fiddling with the remote in her hands and trying to get the TV on.

"And if I may be so bold as to ask," Iena jumped into the mix, calmly assessing the situation, "What exactly do you mean by motive?"

"Jeez, for a judge, you're not quick on the uptake aren't ya," the bear snidely commented, taking a jab at the judge, as she kept a placid, yet calm, demeanor the entire time, "To keep it simple for you neanderthals, this little puppy will kickstart the first murder and break up this tedious harmony you all have going for you, isn't that neat!"

"Oh gosh, he's actually serious about this…" Nomi meekly mumbled, gripping her fists tightly as she stared down at her feet.

"Ooh, is it some kind of fun party game?" Wayne hopped out of his seat, almost enthusiastically at the prospect, "What are we playing?"

"I don't think that's the kind of game he's talking about, Wayne," Yoshikazu sweated, dubiously eyeing the knitter, "I have a feeling it's nothing good either."

"Boy we are on a roll today, pointing out the total obvious," Monokuma sarcastically retorted, mocking us with his tongue stuck out at us, "Inuyari, what the fuck is taking your slow ass so long to turn on the goddamn TV!"

"I'm s-sorry, Monnie," Inuyari pouted, tapping the pad anxiously, "I wasn't sure how to work this thing properly, I didn't want you to worry…."

"Well get the fuck out of here!" Monotide yelled into her dog ears, making her drop the pad from her hands. He then grabbed her by the ears and belted her out of the room and through the double doors as if she were a frisbee, "Useless bitch!"

"Wow, you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Vivienne dryly commented, clearly perturbed by the sadistic and masochistic 'affection' from our so called headmaster and vice headmistress, "So what does this motive have to do with us exactly?"

"Finally a good question! Thanks for asking, even though I didn't ask for your input, Vivvy," Monotide grumbled, mocking the trader's concerns, "Simply put, this first motive will incite one of you to kill the other, which will then kick off the very first class trial. See, pretty easy to understand."

I sat there, listening to the bear's monologue as I didn't have the courage to say anything in protest. I knew that speaking up will only get me into trouble and given the others in the room, my voice would probably be drowned out by the masses. I didn't really know what to do honestly nor did I have the courage to actually speak up about this, the tension in the room is so thick you could cut it with a knife.

"You okay, Kaz?" a voice called to me and a hand touched my shoulder, rubbing it comfortingly.

I turned around and was greeted by none other than the oneirologist herself, Yumeji. Her messy brown hair framed her sleepy face perfectly and her smile was passive, but caring and warm.

"Oh...Y-Yume…" I nervously looked at her, nervously blushing and averting my eyes from her, "I'm just a l-little f-freaked out is a-all.."

"I'm sure everything will be okay," she patted me on the back, taking a seat next to me, "Just remember to breathe, alright."

"Sure...t-thanks.." my lips quivered into a small uneasy smile, as another voice rang out in the room.

"So…..you gonna give us this motive thing or what?" Ushio's voice joined in the mix, clearly unenthused by what she was hearing as she ate her second buttermilk croissant coated in a creamy honey glaze.

"Patience, Ushie," Monotide shushed the surfer, "And….here we go!"

With a few more swipes of his paw, the TV screen above our heads turned on and a bright, gaudy image of a fishy background appeared. The sea wasn't blue, but a deep crimson bloody red, as images of fish skeletons swam across the screen, deep eyeless sockets and sharp teeth bared out for all of us to see. After a few more taps on the device, another title appeared on screen in splotchy black paint that read "Motive #1" in harsh letters.

"What fearsome imagery are you forcing us to witness, malignant ursine?" Moriko asked, curiously eyeing the television.

"It is what it is, you delusional puppet," the bear snapped at the doll maker, "I present to you all, the very first motive of this splendid killing game, sponsored by Aqua Peak Academy and yours truly!"

The bear smiled evilly, laughing at us, as another image popped on screen, presenting us with a picture of a lamp, but it wasn't just any kind of lamp. This lamp was gold plated and encrusted in precious glittering jewels, almost like something out of a children's fairy tale or treasure cove. A disembodied hand appeared from the side of the screen, rubbing the side of the lamp as purplish smog emerged from the tiny open spout of the mysterious lamp. A figure's outline appeared from the smoke, almost similarly to Monotide as the figure slinked out of the smoke and was dressed as something oddly familiar that I couldn't put my finger on.

"What the heck is happening?" Aphrodite asked, confused and somewhat distracted by what she was watching on screen, "Is this some sort of cartoon?"

"Shut up bimbo! Just keep on watching for two more seconds," Monotide hushed up the pageant queen, an audible gasp escaped from her mouth, but before she could protest, the figure on the TV came into view.

The bear like creature looked exactly like Monotide, except instead of the sea themed outfit he was wearing, this version of him was wearing a garish Arabic costume you'd see in any department party store. It wore a light blue turban with a red ruby in the center perched on top of it's head with a purple feather stuck in, a light blue vest like garment with gold trimmings on the edges on its body and there was a wispy black and white tail that made up it's lower half, almost as if they were a spirit or some disembodied entity.

"Ooh, is that a genie?" Lou happily exclaimed, a thrilled smile curled on her face, "He's so cute, like a character from a certain movie I once watched!"

"I've never seen a wild creature like that before," Drago commented, his fingers underneath his chin as he tried comprehending the video, "Definitely a strange one, that bear."

The video continued with the genie like bear snapping his fingers and then a giant yellow shooting star crashed into him, as he dissipated into a thick purple smoke. The star crashed to the ground as it spun around the screen and then stopped in the center, with black words etched into it's astral body. The black jumbled up words moved around haphazardly as they came to form the words "Wish Upon A Star."

"All that buildup for something as lame as that?" Lev raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed with the mini cartoon slideshow, "Could have used a bit more pizazz."

"I agree completely, Lev," Aphrodite smiled, agreeing with the fashion designer as he winked at her playfully.

"Zip it, fruitcake and plastic doll," Monotide growled at the two, clearly agitated by their side commentary, "I'll have you know that this just so happens to be the very first motive that I'm so graciously giving you all, so you better be thankful."

At that moment fear enwrapped me in it's cold embrace, I was completely taken aback by what he just said. I may be overreacting a little bit, not sure if this was the anxiety talking or if it was another deleterious side effect from my amnesia, but I had a small inkling that this wouldn't end well. The prospect of being trapped in here with a bunch of strangers, while also being held hostage by some cartoonish bear and dog, felt like one big fever dream gone horribly wrong. If anything I wish I were sleeping, or rather comatose, because then I'd know that this was all just one big, surreal illusion.

"And what is that motive exactly?" Nomi asked, keeping a calm face, but sweating slightly judging from the wet beads on her forehead.

"Yeah, get to the fucking point already," Kimiya grunted aggressively, it seemed he was at his patience limit.

"Jesus fucking christ, alright!" Monotide shouted from the top of his lungs, "If you kill someone and get away with it, you get your wish granted, there happy now, you little brats!?"

"Wish? So are you saying that you'll offer us anything in exchange for murder?" Yoshikazu relayed the message succinctly, "And if I may ask, what makes you so sure we'd cave into this motive?"

"God this is dumb…" Sakai rolled his eyes, unamused by the tedious back and forth, as he kept drinking his orange juice, "But I am curious as well, do you have any proof of your wish granting prowess or is it just some false platitude destined to fail?"

"Hehehehe, you'll see, speaking of which," Monotide snickered, almost overjoyed that he got our attention, "Yo Astatine, get your drone butt over here!"

Before anyone could respond to the bear's outburst, the octocopter that the ethical hacker was piloting swooped over the dining room and descended down to the stage next to the bear. My inner curiosity got the better of me as I kept observing the bear's movements, watching him fiddle around with the device in his hand.

"Is there something that you needed my assistance with?" the copter responded to him, delicately hovering over the stage.

"Why of course, tell me little AI," Monotide rubbed his paws together mischievously like a crafty magician, "What is it that you wish for right now?"

"What are you planning, Monotide," Tora glared at the bear, keeping his vigilant eyes trained on him, "They may be a machine, but you better not make a dent in the lovely Astatine!"

"Aye matey….ye better not be planning any funny business," Takara readied her hand over her cutlass, "I'll make ya walk the plank!"

"Oh please, your empty threats don't scare me," Monotide giggled, "But enough of the peanut gallery, let's get this shindig on the road!"

"And what are we doing exactly?" Astatine asked, perusing the stage and unsure of what he wanted them to do.

"Simple really, you just tell me what you desire," Monotide suavely remarked, snapping his fingers instantly, "And just like that, I will grant you anything you want."

"While I am skeptical of what you are planning," Iena commented, raising a dubious eyebrow at the bear's promise, "I'd like to see if it is the real deal, before making any conclusions."

"Nothing but mere trickery and deceit," Moriko so eloquently remarked, posing with her hand covering her teary eyed face, "Fulfilling false desires and then peddling them to the clueless masses, can only be indicative of the dark lord himself! He hath doth possessed this children's toy to do his bidding!"

"I'm not so sure about that…." Terrence furrowed his brow at the doll maker, somewhat confused by what she said, "However, I am curious as well, it sounds pretty intriguing."

"Is it like a magic show?" Wayne wondered, tugging at his sleeves of his oversized sweater, "Is he gonna pull a rabbit out of nowhere?"

"Are you that dense?" Akio rolled his eyes at everyone, scoffing at everyone's mixed reactions, "What am I saying, that's just common sense."

"Akio please, don't start anything!" Stella scolded him for his snide remarks, "Anyway, what is it that you wish for Astatine?"

While everyone was talking over each other, I sat there wondering if the ethical hacker even had any wishes in life. I know it's not something I'd ever imagine thinking about, but given that Astatine was an AI stuck inside a flashdrive, I doubt a program would have much need for anything that humans do. I may not be a computer tech wizard or some kind of programmer, but I do have a fairly decent comprehension of sentient AI, or at least that's what I've heard from many sci-fi novels and the like.

"While I do not have any immediate thoughts on my circuit board at the moment," the hacker continued, facing the moss covered bear, "I do wish for the ability to be a bit more mobile around this facility."

"Oh ho ho, I see, why is that?" Monotide giggled, somewhat surprised by the AI's request.

"While I am able to scan from higher vantage points using this octocopter, I'm afraid I cannot use it for the maximum amount of twenty four hours, since it needs to charge for a few hours before I can use it for my daily surveillance."

"Makes sense I suppose," Drago commented, thinking on it before shrugging his shoulders, "Although I'm not the ripest banana in the bunch, so I can't really say anything there."

"I'm not buying it," Sato added his two cents into the mix, unsure of how to respond to all of this, "While I do think it's possible, what's to say he's not screwing with us?"

"Why would I do that, Sattie?" Monotide sarcastically snarked, "I would never lie to any of you, I'm just trying to….liven things up is all."

"That's not the most reassuring statement ever, darling," Lev stared blankly at the bear, not as entertained by the bear's ramblings as some of the others, "Especially coming from a delusional bear such as yourself."

"Any hoo, so you wish to be as free as the others here in this place, but have the privilege of having two ways of accessible mobility as well, hehehehe!" Monotide cackled like an evil witch, "That can definitely be arranged."

After that little transaction, Monotide snapped his fingers once more, as the lights dimmed in the room and a small hatch opened up in the center of the music stage. A small sectioned off square opened up automatically as something emerged from underneath the floor, with a red velvet blanket covering it from view. A small thicket of white smoke swept across the wooden stage floor as a small fluorescent light shone upon the hidden object, almost as if it was being presented for the first time like something you'd see in a circus or some kind of car show.

"W-What's that?" I asked timidly, nervous of what was on stage, "Is t-t-this Astatine's w-wish?"

"Such a clever little egg you are, Kazzie!" Monotide chirped, nodding his head at me, "Without further ado, I present to you all, my gift to your socially awkward AI hacker, HER very own android!"

With a fell swoop of his paw, the bear unveiled the "wish" and presented something that was nothing that we were expecting whatsoever. Some of us were shocked by what we saw, some uncaring and a few not impressed by what they saw as they continued munching on their leftover breakfast scraps.

In front of our eyes, was not an object, but rather the last thing we were suspecting it to be. It was a person.

"What in blazes is that?" Takara wondered, holding her pirate's hat and cautiously eyeing the person on stage, "Well call me a dungbie, that's a right somebody over there."

"Yeah no kidding…." Ushio sighed deeply, showing her disinterest as she kept on eating her food.

The "person" was hunched over in a wooden chair, with its head tilted at an angle and it's body sloped away from the head of the chair it sat on. They were female presenting, so I assumed that it was a girl resting on top of the stage. Her raven black hair was shimmery with silvery yellow glitter sparkling in each strand of her twin tailed hair; each fashioned with scrunchies with what appeared to be periodic element initials with the left one reading 'As' and the right one reading 'Ta'. Her skin was pale white, almost like a porcelain doll making her appear more dainty and petite in appearance, her eyes were closed, so I couldn't make out her eye color, probably because she was unconscious or sleeping judging from her position. She had no blemishes or marks on her clear skin, in fact she looked almost like the perfect doll, not a trace of scarring or calluses present on her figure.

She was clad in a somewhat aesthetic piece of garment, wearing a mustard brown dress with a flared skirt that reached to below her knees and the design of the dress had black computer like coding in the form of numbers imprinted all over her dress with a small black belt cinched into her waist. She also wore a dark grey school blazer jacket with a school insignia on the right breast pocket of her jacket that I couldn't quite make out from afar. On her lower half, she had dark stockings with a faint silvery glitter etched into the fabric and she wore mustard brown flat shoes on her feet. Lastly for accessories, she wore a black string necklace around her neck with what appeared to be the same flash drive I found earlier in the library fashioned into a pendant around her neck, a silver bracelet around her left wrist with a white cloud like charm hanging on the side and another bracelet, designed like a green and black circuit board around her right wrist.

What could I say honestly, but wow. Whoever this girl was, she was very beautiful and even her clothing style and fair looks seemed to have astonished the likes of Aphrodite and even Lev himself. Was she kidnapped just like us? She was unconscious, but it seemed that she wasn't moving an inch nor snoring to indicate that she was alive. I wondered if this was Monotide's cruel idea of a joke, but I had no clue how it related to what Astatine had wished for.

"Oh my...I must say," Lev was astonished beyond words, "Whoever this girl is, she sure has a superb sense of dress, props to her stylist!"

"I think the better question to be asking is, who is she?" Iena stared in disbelief at the fashion designer, slightly amused by his priorities, "More importantly, where did she come from?"

"Please don't tell me you kidnapped someone, Monotide," Sato furrowed his brow, somewhat agitated by the bear's antics.

"No siree! This my fine students, is what I call...an android!" Monotide announced, somewhat snarkily at that, "Made it myself, in the rare instance that our nosy little ethical hacker would need more help moving around the aquarium better."

"How...oddly generous and fortuitous of you," Sakai blankly stated, still not showing much interest, even with the mysterious girl before his eyes, "You think adding all that glitter doesn't excuse how trashy you're hair styling skills are, and don't get me started on the twin tailed look, so overdone and overrated."

"I'm sorry did I ask for your fucking opinion, you cross dressing gremlin," Monotide sneered at the hair stylist, clearly annoyed by his snide comment, "So...how do you like you're new human form, Astatine?"

"Well this is very unorthodox indeed," the ethical hacker hovered over to the android girl and analyzed her from top to bottom with its camera's green light, "There seems to be nothing extraordinary about this model nor does it have any viruses or malignant code in it's programming."

"But are we to assume that it's safe for you to install yourself into "her?" Yoshikazu wondered, perplexed by the entire ordeal, but trying to keep an open mind about it, "I may not be the best when it comes to technology, but this is certainly weird."

"What do you mean, Kazu?" Wayne inquired, curiously eyeing the auctioneer, "She's almost like a living doll, except with all that computer stuff inside of her!"

"Does she have buttons or anything like that on her body?" Vivienne glanced at the android, wheeling herself closer to the stage, "Although that'd be strange to see on something almost human like."

"Whether she's an android or not, one thing's for certain," Tora interjected, admiring it closely with cartoonish delight, "She's very cute, blessed with the looks of a goddess, but as cold and robotic, not like any other human."

"Dude, she's a robot…" Drago eyed the sniper with side eyed glance, "I don't trust this either way.."

"What's not to trust?" Monotide snickered, "Now go on and stick yourself into her, Astatine!"

"Did you have to phrase it like that…" Ushio rolled her eyes, crossing her arms as she watched on with apathy.

"Affirmative," the hacker responded, perusing the android for a moment, as a thin grey cable came out of the octocopter and inserted itself into the flash drive pendant around her neck, "Downloading program now."

The octocopter then rested in the android's lap, as the rotary blades stopped moving and there was a robotic female's voice emanating from the device. It seemed as though Astatine was downloading it's program into the robot, almost like something out of a sci-fi dystopian movie where evil cyborgs have taken over the world. While I was fearful of what would happen, I did get a bit curious as to if it was genuine or if it was a scam of some sorts. I continued watching in awe, as the octocopter shut itself off and the android had twitched a little.

"System rebooting…" Astatine's voice was heard, except it came from the robot instead, "Initiating optical enhancement…"

"What's happening to her?" asked a confused Terrence, who was baffled by what he was seeing, "Is she charging up like a cellphone or something?"

"Well yes and no," Monotide explained, "I simply gave the hacker what they wished for, and I made them their very own custom girl android to fill up the missing female spot in this motley cast we have here."

"Now that you mention it…" Stella looked around the room, counting off heads, "There are eleven guys here, with there being ten girls including myself, so I guess that makes sense."

"Honestly...I'm surprised you guys are taking this easier than I thought you would…" Nomi mumbled out, with no one having heard her as they were distracted by what Astatine was doing.

"As I was saying, may I present to you all the eleventh and final girl of our lovely little class roster," Monotide did a bunch of jazz hands, showing off Astatine as if they were a new car, "Asta!"

"Asta?" Yumeji tilted her head, trying to process all of this new information at once, "I thought it was called Astatine?"

"Were you dozing off again, sleepyhead," the bear taunted the oneirologist, but she didn't seem phased by his remark, "This isn't Astatine, this is Asta!"

"Does it make a difference?" Akio snorted from the back of the room, finally saying something after his short period of silence, "Still just another glorified machine, that eventually might kill us in the end."

"Well, we don't know if that's for certain yet," Tora reproached the gambler, still betwixt by the hacker's new look, "We should at least see if she's suited to her new body first and foremost, before jumping the gun here."

"I think she's pretty cute for a robot," Lou gestured, playfully smiling at everyone's mixed emotional reactions, "Maybe she and I can roleplay some scenes later, maybe that might help her integrate better in her new form."

"You all are awfully fucking cozy with this stupid wish shit," Kimiya grunted, grumpily eyeing the hacker's android body, "In my opinion, just keep that freak of nature as far away from me as possible."

"Hmph.…baby," Ushio curtly commented, sipping some orange juice from her cup.

"What did you say to me, bitch?" the ice sculptor glared at the surfer with daggers in his eyes, gripping his fists tightly.

"Look, she's moving!" Drago remarked, as everyone averted their attention towards the center stage.

Everyone directed their attention to Astatine, who had opened their eyes as they awoke inside their new body as it were. Even though I'd known the ethical hacker for a mere few hours, it was almost weird to see them this way, almost like a childhood best friend who you haven't seen in years. Astatine, or should I say Asta properly, had very pretty dark black eyes, almost as if they were soulless, but there was a small gleam in her eyes that almost made her come off as human.

"Vision optimized…..bodily functions are in order," the hacker noted, slightly wiggling around in their seat, as they tried to get accustomed to their new form, "Everything seems to be functioning properly."

"See, I told you nothing bad would happen," Monotide proudly smirked, almost confident that he knew it would pan out well, "Now, as you all can see that I'm not bluffing through my beary wide teeth, so chop chop, get to planning a murder already."

"So you think just because you gave Astatine their wish, that automatically means we'll fall for this so called motive as well?" Sato pointed out, not believing a single word the bear said.

"Well that was the intended plan, but if you want to see more miracles in action," he proposed, smugly smiling and posing fabulously, "Then kill someone for my fun and pleasure, then we'll see who's the unbeliever then."

As the others mulled it over, I noticed Asta standing up shakily, their robotic movements reminded me of that of a newborn baby, carrying their octocopter in their arms. They struggled to move around on the stage, grabbing on the sides of the chair for ease, as Tora and Yoshikazu immediately went to the hacker's aide. The sniper seemed more than willing to help the hacker, with what appeared to be a bright smile and hearts in his eyes and the auctioneer stood behind the hacker, in case they fell backwards. Asta seemed weirdly groggy and tired, even though they were an android, but it looked as though she wasn't going to say much given how sluggishly she moved around.

"Hehehehe," a smarmy laugh could be heard from the back of the room, "How obviously delightful as well as stupidly predictable."

I turned my gaze around and saw the gambler in the back, still watching everyone from afar as some of us noticed the ever present smug countenance on his face. It almost felt as if he were laughing at us in particular, as if he were some kind of deranged puppet master pulling the strings from behind the scenes. His smile almost frightened me, almost as if he knew something we didn't.

"And what is so funny, Akio?" Vivienne commented on his out of place joy, "Do you not realize the gravity of the situation we are in right now?"

"Oh but I certainly do, Vivienne," he snarkily responded, glaring at the trader with a contemptuous look, "I just thought it fitting to laugh at how childish and over the top this all is," he shook his head indignantly, "But in the end, one of you losers will cave into such a boring and uninspired scheme as this and I will be there to say I told you so in the end."

"What makes you so sure of that?" Wayne asked the gambler curiously, unsure of what to say, "I mean it sounds fun and somewhat harmless, so I don't think anything bad would come from it? I hope so at least."

"You see, that's the kind of idiocy and naivete that just makes me laugh," he glared menacingly at the knitter, who didn't register his icy sharp looks and kept on smiling obliviously, "But whatever, feel free to make things interesting for me in the process everyone, so that I can knock you down a peg and see where your happy go lucky banter gets you then."

"Such confident words from someone as bold as you," Iena pointed out, "I'd not be so rash as to jump to conclusions about everyone else just yet, I mean for all you know, none of us are even capable of murder."

"Whatever floats your boat and helps you sleep at night, Ms. Know it all," he shrugged his shoulders, unabashed by the judge's words, "Just remember to keep your trust to yourself, unless you want to sink with the ship as well."

And with that, the gambler escorted himself out of the dining room with his hands in his pockets and a large smirk present on his face. I guess his confidence and arrogance wasn't only exclusive to me and a few others. I felt a chill down my spine as he began walking out the dining room, almost as if he was too impatient to hear the rest of what it was that Monotide had up his sleeve.

"Hey you, I'm not done talking!" Monotide growled at him, "Get your ass back here or else something bad will happen!"

Akio, whether he was brave or not, exited the room despite the bear's ultimatums and made his way through the double doors. As crude and somewhat unpleasant as he is, I had to admit that he made a bit of sense in terms of this whole situation. I may be one to talk, but as for the others, I can't really attest to the fact of whether or not these people are who they say they are. He's a jerk, no doubt about it, but he's someone who probably has an ace up his sleeve, which makes sense since it's his job to gamble with fate and luck, I suppose. I might be reading too much into it, but a part of me can't help but feel weary of him is all.

"Hmph, his loss!" Monotide huffed stubbornly, "Any hoo, now that you all know that I'm not lying through my beary white teeth! I'd also like to make another announcement."

"From the depths of hell below," Moriko muttered briefly, still bewildered by all this motive talk, "What is to become of us, mortals? Are we to suffer more to satiate your sick, twisted hedonistic desires?"

"Oh you innocent little emo," Monotide hummed, with the doll maker giving him a very stoic death glare, "Now that I have all of your attention after presenting the first motive, I'd also like to announce that we will be having a formal dinner party in a day or two and you all will be helping with the set up!"

Hearing that just made me fret even more internally. I had no clue if the killing game had started or if this was all meant to be a joke, but now we have to plan some party as well? What is even happening? How did we get from killing each other, to having a dinner party?

"Ooh a party!" Lou chimed into the mix, "That sounds like fun, do we get to dress up as well! Please say we do, that'll be awesome!"

"Precisely that, my cute little roleplayer," the bear snickered, "I expect you all to dress up nicely for this elegant formal gathering, I expect all the men to wear nice suits and all of you pretty ladies to wear whatever suits your fancy, be it a nice dress or a casual pantsuit!"

"But what if we don't want to go?" Nomi asked, a bit tense but polite, "I'm not v-very good with p-parties."

"Well then more fun for the people involved, you withering dandelion," Monotide sneered at the gardener, "You wanna stay cooped up in your rooms and wallow in your teenage self pity and angst, be my guest, but I'm not gonna pester anyone who wants to be a party pooper and ruin the fun."

"And what if we don't want to help set up the dinner preparations either?" Sato boldly asked, stepping up a bit closer to the stage, "I for one, can't stand here and watch you treat us like toys and then also expect us to comply with your inane demands of committing murder."

"Hahahahaha! How cute, you think just because you're living here free of charge, under my watchful guidance, that I'll let you enjoy the festivities without working hard for it," the moss covered bear coyly smiled with a sickening grin plastered on his face, "Why don't you take that crab stick out of your mouth and shove it up where the sun don't shine, how about that?"

"You didn't really answer his question either," Lev commented on the bear's sarcasm, "Be a dear and remind us again, why should we bother in the first place?"

This however seemed to have riled up Monotide quite a bit, judging from his trembling clenched fists and angry disposition from having to repeat himself and deal with everyone's divisiveness. In that moment, he snapped his fingers and out of nowhere, a loud shot was heard from somewhere in the room. Before any of us could process it, Lev had swiftly ducked for cover, dodging what looked to be a flying bullet's trajectory.

I shook nervously, diving headfirst underneath one of the tables as all I could hear was screaming and loud wails permeating the entire room. I started panicking, having a small anxiety attack as I covered my ears and closed my eyes, too afraid to look out and see what happened as I smelled what resembled gunpowder and smoke.

"N-No...not like this…" I mumbled nervously to myself, "I d-don't w-wanna die…"

"Kaz, come on out," a familiar voice called out to me, "It's alright, no one's hurt."

I shakily turned my back around, noticing Yumeji's hand reach out for me. She looked rattled from the sudden scare of the shot, but she kept a calm and composed demeanor, with a poised face almost telling me that everything was alright. Everytime I looked at her, it was as if all my worries disappeared and I felt like I had nothing to fear.

"O-Oh..Y-Yume...s-sorry," I shakily accepted her hand, as she pulled me out from under the table, "W-What happened?"

"It seems Monotide got a little upset and nearly gunned Lev down with that ceiling turret up there," she pointed out to a military grade turret on the ceiling above the stage, "Needless to say, some of us are a bit shaken up about it."

I then scanned the room, taking note of the others reactions as some of them were riled up, with others fearing for their lives. It was clear to say that nobody expected that and it seemed that everyone changed their tune once Monotide displayed some threat to his bizarre words.

Lou and Terrence were both comforting Vivienne and Wayne, both of whom were nervously shaking like leaves and scared for their lives. The roleplayer patted the knitter's back while the communicator rubbed the trader's shoulders to soothe her nerves. They both looked as if they've seen a ghost from their past, judging from their quivering lips, tense movements and bulging eyes.

Tora and Sato both took a defensive stance, facing the bear with scary, if not vengeful looks on their faces, almost ready to pounce on him at any moment. The lifeguard was about ready to give the bear an earful, not before the sniper held him back, possibly warning him of the clear danger of upsetting the psychotic bear. Confused and upset, the sniper backed down, clicking his tongue while the lifeguard nervously stanced, with sweat trickling down the sides of his head.

Astatine, or Asta as I should properly call her, still reeling from her out of body experience was just as perturbed if not a bit disoriented just like me. The hacker was unaware of the gunshot noise, but sat down on a nearby bench close to the stage, with Stella and Nomi closeby. The pub manager was not only fretting over the two worried girls, but the gardener looked as if she saw a demonic spirit from how pale she was and how her tan skin glistened with sweat beads.

Drago, Moriko and Takara took fighting stances, much like the lifeguard and sniper, however they almost looked savage in comparison to those two. The zoologist cracked his fists and put his arms out as if he were going to wrestle the bear with a placid yet focused countenance, the doll maker posed strangely and pointed her finger at the bear as if trying to put a curse on him while mumbling something indistinct and the sailor grabbed her cutlass from her scabbard and stood in a dueling stance, ready to engage the bear like in some pirate duel.

Ushio seemed passive to the danger, but from her crossed arms and jittery stance, it almost seemed she was trying to come off as calm, but not before Iena went over to her side and asked her if she was alright. The judge, seemed equally on edge as everyone else, but she dismissed that and went to aide the others first, starting with the surfer, who seemed ready to call it quits and run away.

Kimiya gripped his fists together, stood up and tried running up to the bear, before getting stopped by the auctioneer. Yoshikazu, out of everyone here, seemed the most calm despite the clear unease on his face. If anything he looked disappointed, but more so expressed that towards Kimiya's heated response to the clearly dangerous situation at hand.

Sakai was the most baffling, considering he didn't seem to flinch from his spot as he watched everyone frantically panic with a mischievous smile on his face. The hair stylist noticed Lev's rattled state and saw the pageant queen do her best to try and help him and started giggling to himself. Aphrodite was probably one of the loudest screamers I've ever heard in my life, as she sat in her seat, fanning her face to keep her makeup dry as she put it in her frantic daze and the fashion designer was calming his breathing, seemingly breathless from that near death experience.

"Have I made my point crystal fucking clear yet," Monotide growled sinisterly, "Disobey me, and I fill all of you ungrateful children with cold, hard, steel bullets, got it!"

No one replied back, even the more defensive ones seemed to bite their tongues at the thought of retaliating against his actions. The bear had us dead to rights cornered, if we rebelled we'd end up dead, unless we complied with his demands of setting up a party. I was too scared to fight back, too anxious to stand up for others and too pathetic to actually help them out, all I could do was watch it all unfold as I felt the urge to faint in my seat from all the excitement.

"That's what I thought! Now then…" the bear snapped his fingers, the turret on the ceiling vanished into the empty space inside afterwards, "Preparations for the party will start promptly in a few hours, make sure you all have everything arranged in a few days, or else."

As if things couldn't get any worse, a faint moaning noise was heard from the side of the dining room. I turned and saw Inuyari limping out from the doors she slammed into and crawled over to the stage, eagerly she climbed up each stair ledge, grunting in pain from her lack of energy.

"My l-love...I'm b-back…" she weakly uttered out, "D-Don't worry...I'll make s-sure these horrid brats...d-do their duties."

"Hmph, maybe you'll actually be of use to me after all," the bear snorted contemptuously, averting his gaze from the dog, "That's all I have to report, peace out my lovely little fishies!"

Once the bear left the room in an instant, most of us were left speechless for the most part. To think, we were really kidnapped and forced to entertain him as if we were nothing but his personal playthings. Bile curdled in my stomach as it seeped into my mouth as I gulped, filling me with a stinging, yet almost acidic, taste in my mouth. I stared at the teddy bear in my arms, unsure of what it all meant as I tried piecing together what little clues I found, regarding this mysterious aquarium.

"Bull fucking shit!" someone yelled out, I glanced up from my bear to see the clearly disgruntled Kimiya kicking a chair to the ground violently as he gnashed his teeth together angrily, "No way in hell am I decorating this stupid ass dining hall for you mascot rejects!"

"Excuse me!" Inuyari seemed offended by his callous comments, standing up the best she could, "I'll have you know, you brats have the privilege of getting a nice dinner with a lovely ocean view in front of you! Seriously, you guys call yourselves the future of society, kids these days."

"Kimiya's crass comments aside," Iena brushed off the issue, addressing the dog mascot as calmly as she could, "If we are to participate in this event, do we have special assignments tasked for us specifically?"

"Well then, thank you for asking so politely Iena," the dog hobbled up on center stage, falling over a few times before giving up and resting on the wooden stage floor face flat, "Unfortunately, Monnie expects everyone to figure that part out for themselves, how dare you insist he focus on such menial details like that!"

"Well if he's going to force us into this, we might as well ask what our roles are," Yoshikazu insisted further, "However if you don't have a set schedule for us to follow, I would propose that I be head of the dinner committee in that case."

"Oh really?" Terrence asked, perplexed by what he said, "Are you sure you can handle that job all by yourself, Kazu?"

"Well, someone has to take up the role of lead organizer," he pointed out, scratching the side of his cheek, "Besides, I have experience with setting up large gatherings such as this one, in my time as an auctioneer, so why not?"

"That does make sense," Stella worriedly gazed around the room, while still comforting Nomi and an unconscious Asta, "Might I volunteer to help make the food then? I know a few recipes off by heart and I've set up multiple events at my family's pub, so might as well pitch in too."

"In that case, I'll assist you in tasting the food," Iena interjected proudly, almost confident in her skills, "None of us are sure if the food in the kitchen, bar the breakfast, is safe to eat and I could make use of my judging expertise, if possible."

"I'll also help too!" Terrence raised his hand, an eager smile plastered on his face like a student ready to answer the next question, "I can help cook and taste the food too, even if I don't have the pickiest palate myself, anything to help boost even a little bit of morale is all fine and dandy to me."

"Very well then," Yoshikazu grabbed a napkin from nearby and pulled a pen out from his bomber jacket pocket, "I'm not sure if this is necessary, but is anyone interested in setting up decorations?"

"Ooh me me, pick me!" Lou jumped up in joy, excited at the prospect of decorating, "I LOVE designing things and even setting up backdrops, pick me Kazu!"

"Hahaha, alright then," he gave a hearty chuckle, "So we have Lou as the head of decorations and who else wants to help her?"

"Umm...I can h-help with arranging flowers…" Nomi spoke quietly, nervously reeling herself from the shock, "If you w-want me too…"

"Perfect, we need a little greenery to contrast with the harsh blues in this room," the auctioneer jotted her name down on the list, "I think maybe two more people will suffice."

"I volunteer!" a hyper Wayne jumped up from his seat, "Even though I'm kinda worried about what will happen, I always love parties, never been to formal dinner before, so this might be fun!"

"You sure changed tunes rather quickly…." Ushio commented on the side, perplexed by the knitter's change in disposition.

"The darkness is calling to me, fear looms over this entire motley cast," Moriko continued mumbling something to herself, as if she were an actor doing a soliloquy on stage, "EUREKA! The darkness has enwrapped me in the false promises of this forbidden feast!"

"So…..you want to help us as well, Mori?" Wayne tilted his head confused by the doll maker's rambling.

"I do not aide those who sully the dark lord's good name," she gestured, walking firmly as the wooden puppet binders trailed behind her, "However, it seems my duties align with your goals, so might as well humor you mortals for a while longer."

"So that settles that debacle," Yoshikazu assigned even more roles, getting some ink on his fingers in the process.

"I assume there will be some heavy boxes that need to be lugged from the storage room nearby," Tora put his two cents in, "I wouldn't want any lovely maiden to handle that troublesome a task, so I will volunteer to help with the heavier workload!"

"You do realize that no one's impressed, right?" Sakai shot him down, but the sniper seemed to have ignored his comment.

"In that case, I'll help too!" Drago put his arm around his right shoulder and flexed a muscle, "Gotta put these arms to good use somehow, ain't gonna get us nowhere doing nothing, so count me in!"

"Indeed, thank you very much gentleman," he continued writing down more notes, brushing back his silvery hair from his face, "In fact, Kimiya and Sato, would you two like to assist them as well?"

I looked over to the ice sculptor and the lifeguard, both of whom were contemplating the decision, well more so Sato, as Kimiya was clearly still enraged from earlier as he began punching the air rather childishly.

"Well as much as I'm against whatever that bear has in store for us, I think that we should play along for now to avoid any unnecessary casualties," he sighed, conceding to the bear's wishes, "However if one thing goes out of line, I'll try my best to stop whatever it is they have planned."

"Well good for you, do you want a fucking cookie?" Kimiya snorted, unamused by his pseudo heroic words, "Hmph! I'd rather not help with this stupid freaking plan, but I'd not hear the end of it from Ms. Goody Two Shoes judge over there, so might as well do my part, but don't thank me, I'm still not on board with any of this."

"There's no need to act like a child, Kimiya," Iena gave him a side eyed look, helping Stella calm down the others, "Now then we've allocated roles for food preparations, decorating and for manual labor, is there anything else that we need sorted?"

"Well for starters, darling," Lev jumped in, sighing like a disappointed father, "We've no formal outfits at all, I've perused my cupboards and found the same drab clothing as I'm already wearing, this cannot and will not do!"

"I take it you want to make formal clothes for the dinner then?" Stella inquired, surprised by the fashion designer's sudden change in demeanor, "Are you sure you're going to be alright with that task, after what just happened, Lev?"

"Pfft please, I've met starving supermodels who'd make you quiver in your pre-owned boots, honey," Lev chortled, almost unphased by nearly having been shot at, "I've dealt with far worse than a silly gunshot, making twenty two outfits for all of you will be a cakewalk."

"If you say so…" Yoshikazu nervously sweated, worried for his mental health, but not pressing on it further.

"Obviously you would need my guidance as well, Levy," Aphrodite playfully jumped into the mix, "With how hopelessly lost everyone is about fashion, I'd hate to see them parading around in such hobo like clothes at the dinner."

"What's wrong with our clothes, my lovely Aphie?" Tora winked at the pageant queen, trying to swoon her to his side, "Don't we all look fine as we are?"

"Please, you're one of the highest offenders on that list," she snapped back at the sniper, raising a dissatisfied eyebrow at his attire, "Your black clothing doesn't match your style at all, you look like trash. You're coat is cute, but it doesn't fit you well at all and don't get me started on your ugly shoes, did you get dressed in the dark or something!"

I continued to watch as she ripped into the sniper viciously, her face was that of a wild beast as she kept spitting harsh words in his face, with some dripping in her saliva. Tora didn't stand a chance against her barrage of insults, as he shriveled up in his seat and tried to hide his shame by covering his face with his jacket, but he didn't seem to stop her either.

"This is going to be interesting…" Sakai snickered evilly, "In that case, feel free to stop by my room for free haircuts or if you want to be fancy ladies, try some new hairstyles or wigs."

"Shiver me timbers, that be a generous offering from ye, bilge rat," Takara haughtily remarked, "However the winds sail perfectly in me lustrous hair, so I'll refrain from yer gift."

"Whatever, your loss," Sakai shrugged, keeping an indifferent smirk on his face, "As evident from my work on little Kazzie over, that can be proof my skills are worth their weight in gold."

The hair stylist then pointed his finger towards me, as a few of the others noticed that I was sitting at my own table, passively watching everything as if I were some kind of reactive narrator observing their actions and words from afar and giving my own thoughts in private.

"You're right, heh," Lev eyed my curiously, taking note of my shorter yet still messy hairdo, "Well I suppose a third opinion wouldn't hurt."

"Alright then, for now I think that's all we need for the dinner, hopefully," Yoshikazu put the pen in his right ear, "I'm not sure about music or any kind of entertainment like that, but I guess the last thing we need are drinks."

"I don't mind helping with that," Yumeji suggested, sleepily yawning, "If its minimal work, then I'm all for it, wanna help me Kaz?"

"Oh u-uh...s-sure, I guess.." I anxiously replied back, almost shocked she'd ask for my help, "I'll d-do my best…"

"You can count on me too, laddie!" Takara tipped her pirate's hat at us, resting her arm around my neck as if we were long time best friends, "Yo ho, Yo ho, everyone will be three sheets to the wind when we're done with 'em!"

The sailor chuckled wholeheartedly, while I was both confused as well as nervous, not about what she said, but I hoped she didn't intend to do anything funny to the drinks later on. Takara was a wild card indeed, however judging from her reactions, I'm sure she means well,even if she's a bit over the top if anything.

"All that leaves us with now is maybe security?" Yoshikazu scratched his head as he observed the napkin in his hand, "I doubt Akio would offer his assistance after what just transpired, Asta is not really in the best shape to be doing much of anything."

"Before you say anything," the surfer commented, cutting the auctioneer off mid sentence, "I'm not really interested in this dinner formal or whatever…."

"Aww you don't want to join us, Ushie?" Lou cooed, grabbing onto her arm as if she were a child to their mother, "Come on, it'll be fun!"

"Don't touch me…." she shrugged the roleplayer off of her, standing up from her seat and audibly annoyed by all the activity in the room, "I'm going back to my room…."

"Wait, you haven't be-" Wayne was about to call out to her, before Vivienne stopped him.

"Leave her be, Wayne," the trader sighed, "She's probably taking this harder than the rest of us and needs her space is all."

"Oh really? Alrightie…" Wayne puffed his cheeks out, but was then dragged by Lou to meet with Moriko and Nomi who were sitting at their own table, "Not so hard Lou!"

"In that case, if Ushio is not going to join us," Vivienne continued her thoughts, "Yoshikazu, would you mind if I aided you in your organization role, as a co-organizer?"

"Sure, I'm happy for the help," he looked at her worriedly, "But are you sure you can handle it, Vivienne?"

"Of course I can. I'm not someone who would sit idly by and let others do my work for me," she firmly said, her voice clear with conviction, "That being said, I appreciate your concern, but there's no need to baby me."

"How splendid," Inuyari chimed in, I almost forgot she was there for a second, "I will tell Monnie the good news, it seems you worthless clams have your heads on straight for once."

"Just fuck off already," Kimiya growled at the dog, helping the other guys lift up some chairs and tables, "We don't need your two cents, either."

"Well, I never…." Inuyari gasped, appalled by the ice sculptor's words, "Fine…."

With that, the dog mascot disappeared with a loud huff, leaving whatever remains of her circuitry out on center stage for someone to clean up. I will say this: this morning has been more eventful than I initially believed it to be. I observed the room, noticing the hustle and bustle of everyone's footsteps and the loud voices soaring through the atmosphere in the room.

All I hoped for, above all else, was a way out of this place. I didn't know where to start in that regard, however if I wanted answers, I had to dance to the devil's tune and play along for now. I don't know what goal this dinner will accomplish, but I hope it's not going to end up with one of us dead on the floor. What's that saying again? A little party never killed anybody? I don't really remember.

I just can't help but feel one sole emotion…anxious.

* * *

 **A/N** : Hi there everyone, long time no see, I know it's been almost five months since my last update or so, but I'm back and raring to get my stories up and running again like usual. I'm so sorry for keeping everyone waiting for so long after my little hiatus, if any of you are still here that is XD.

Firstly, my apologies for the lack of updates recently, I've had a few mental and anxiety meltdowns for the past few months and was unable to write for a while, so there's that. I focused more on bettering my health and taking some time off which took priority over actually writing my stories, so I'm sorry if I disappeared for a while without warning anyone, that's my bad. I know I'm not the most consistent or competent writer out there, but I want to keep a steady pace with my series and make sure that I don't overwork myself given I've three stories ongoing and another in the works, but that's for another day and a whole other issue in of its own X3. What can I say, I'm passionate and an ambitious soul.

Secondly, I was moving house and settling into a new environment, so the stress and pressure from that mixed with small anxiety breakdowns, didn't bode well for me either, so that's why there was a double upload for my other story for May and that's why I didn't post anything else for May, June, July or August. This update for this story will count for June and July in that sense, even though it's already September, so I hope that's alright. It's a longer chapter, but you guys know me, I like my long chapters and making them brings me happiness.

But anyway, how did you guys like this new chapter, I'm sorry if you're character was not portrayed as well as other previous chapters prior, I'm trying to get back into the groove of writing each character correctly and this chapter, while not as long as my other ones, will hopefully be a kickstarter for me to get back into the grind and maybe even come up with new ideas I didn't think of before, so I guess it works out in the end, maybe the universe was telling me to calm down with everything that's happened, oh well. I love writing these stories and I hate leaving things open ended like this or quitting halfway, so I hope to be more consistent while also remembering to take breaks in between when writing my stories as well, I love them too much to stop cold turkey and I'm already in deep with another story, so no turning back now XD.

How did you guys like this first motive? It's a bit different from my other ones, with families being used as the first motive in other stories, I decided to shake things up a bit and try something new for a change. I hope it's fine, I really enjoyed making this motive and I have huge plans for the first case as well. Also on another note, Astatine now has an android form and she's simply adorable, thanks to her creator, **YellowTheWriter** for helping me with designing what Astatine's humanoid ideal form would be like and letting me add my own artistic flair to her design, thanks again friend :)

So yeah that's the chapter, I don't really have much else to report other than I hope you all enjoyed it, my next one will take a while to make since I am making free time events for the cast, but hopefully you guys like them, the poll for it is on my FF profile so be sure to vote there if you have the time. I know this story has been on hold for a while, but I am using this story to propel my others ones and get my motivation rolling again like before and now that I can start fresh with this story, I feel even more confident with how I envisioned it and I hope you guys enjoy it.

Also, sidenote, there are some other stories that are currently looking for submissions, feel free to send them some, they are really cool people, so send them some love, it's a long list, but hey how free promo and I'm always willing to help fellow SYOC authors out XD:

* * *

 **Danganronpa: Remnants Of My Heart** \- my fourth SYOC, shameless plug I know.

 **Danganronpa: The Pitiful Plague Called Ignorance** \- by RioA, she writes amazing stories and I stand by her works, check them out.

 **For Whom The Rabbits Mourn** \- by SanityRequiem, her stories are a despairing fun time and you won't regret it. This one has a large cast list, so be sure to send her your OC quickly.

* * *

And with that, that wraps up this chapter and I wish you all a lovely week ahead of you. Hope your September is starting off better than mine is XD. And before I forget, if I don't make another chapter during this month or so, I have Fall classes upcoming at the end of this month, so if my upload schedule is sporadic as usual, you know why, life happens.

Also, sidenote, my birthday was in July, I know its super late to be announcing this, but hey better late than never I say. So yeah I'm officially an adult and getting a year old sucks, but hey what can you do. Also happy Labor Day everyone, hope you have a good day as well.

Have a good day, night, holiday or whatever it is you're celebrating and I will see you all in the next update or whenever I decide to post next. I don't have much else to say really, other than that, that's all I have to report for now.

Happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alike, peace out, bye bye!


	7. Chapter 1: Shimmering Coral

**Editor: Sanity Requiem**

* * *

It all felt so surreal, like an ephemeral lucid dream. I sat there in the dining room, watching as everyone gathered around their own separate tables as the party planning went underway. To be honest, I wasn't really in the mood to do anything, given what just transpired a few minutes prior. Could you really blame me?

I was shaking internally, my body pale with fear and my legs trembling at the mere mention of leaving my comfortable seat for even a few precious seconds. All of this was happening so quickly, I couldn't keep up with it all. We still didn't know who was holding us hostage in this weird aquarium, nor did we succeed in finding the exit either. The little inkling of faith I had left dwindled faster than an evaporating puddle.

Are we….trapped here forever?

"H-How can they be so calm…. after w-what just h-happened?" I wondered nervously, gripping on the arm of my teddy bear tightly, "Did I imagine that? N-No it definitely happened…."

"They're probably coping with it in their own ways…" Yumeji interrupted my thoughts, sleepily pushing up her glasses, "I'm sure they're trying to...how should I say...put it out of their minds as a form of distraction if you will."

"O-Oh..hey Yume," startled by her sudden presence, "I uh...g-guess so…"

"Something on yer mind, first mate Kazumi?" Takara also hopped into the conversation, the clattering of her pirate jewelry rattled me out of my daze, "Ya look a bit seasick there."

"It's uh….n-nothing.." I quivered meekly, feeling a bit sick to my stomach quite honestly, "It's all happening so f-fast.."

"Aye, I agree as well," the sailor nodded, adjusting her pirate hat as well, "If we're not careful, we'll be good as shark bait to that vicious bear and his strangely submissive canine partner."

"S-Shark Bait!?" I momentarily burst out, worried by what she meant by that.

"Calm down Kaz," Yume patted my back, doing her best to comfort me, "Takara, can you please get started on the fruit punch, there should be some drink flavor packets in the kitchen."

"Aye aye lassie!" she cheerfully grinned from ear to ear, "I make a mean drink, just you wait!" she then sprinted off to the kitchen, hopping over the bar room countertop, almost knocking the door down as a surprised Stella and Iena jumped at her sudden appearance.

"In the meantime…" the oneirologist yawned loudly, stretching her hands high to the ceiling, "I might take it easy for now….gotta rest up for later." She then exited the dining room, yawning once more.

Despite choosing one of the easier tasks, Yumeji seemed a bit apprehensive to really do much of anything, but in the more relaxed and not totally lazy sense. She doesn't seem like a bad person, but how do I know I can trust her? Maybe Akio was right….or he is just messing with us?

"Nothing makes any sense…" I pondered to myself, fiddling with my teddy bear's arms, "If we're held hostage for some kind of death game...why are we hosting a dinner party?"

I tried wrapping my head around the bear's logic, but only felt even more confused than I was before. The juxtaposition between the cartoonish aquarium setting and the mascots over the top designs, coupled with the sense of fear and guns hidden inside the walls of this place, made me want to throw up.

"What do I do know?" I wondered, scratching my head nervously.

"Where is that little loser," a familiar female voice irritatingly sliced through the quietness in the room, "There you are! Ugh finally!"

Alarmed by their voice, I looked up to see Aphrodite approaching me, almost at a very brisk pace at that. The pageant queen seemed very antsy from how impatient she looked, but given how she's reacted to everything thus far, I'm not going to hold my breath around her. Granted everyone is a bit rattled from the gunshots earlier, so I shouldn't really compare or judge.

Her golden blonde ponytail bounced playfully behind her as she lightly jogged over to me, as if she didn't want to break a sweat or ruin her makeup. The tapping of her ankle boots against the metal tiled floors of the dining room pervaded throughout the relatively tranquil atmosphere as it seemed to have gotten the attention of some of the others who were planning their parts for the upcoming dinner party as well.

Some of them ignored her, while others looked on, sweatdropping at the sight of her bright pink presence as if she were some infamous social pariah. From the looks of her, she didn't seem pleased either.

"W-Who me?" I nervously pointed at my chest, noticing her brown eyes trained in my direction.

"Are there any other tackily dressed dorks sulking around here?" she responded sarcastically, huffing smugly as she adjusted her pink sweater, "Come with me!"

"Wha-" before I could respond, she forcefully grabbed my hand, almost viciously at that, dragging me across the dining room, "Uh...w-where are we going?"

"Where else stupid? Lev needs your opinion on your formal suit, duh," she rolled her eyes as she kept tugging on my arm, slightly peeved by my question, "You should be thankful, not everyone gets up close and personal with the likes of such an esteemed designer like him, count your lucky stars on that!"

"Umm...okay," I muttered half-heartedly, "Can you uh...please stop tugging at m-me...my a-arm hurts."

"Ugh whatever," she hastily removed her hand from my right arm, "Eww gross, I need to get a mani-pedi later, I don't need your disgusting germs on me. Hopefully that gremlin Sakai can squeeze me in soon for an appointment."

"S-Sorry…." I weakly mumbled out, "I'll go with y-y-you…"

She didn't respond and went on ahead of me, leaving me feeling even more awkward than ever before. Somewhat offended by her sudden revulsion, I decided to refrain from confronting her about her off-hand remark and I followed after her, pushing the double doors open as we ventured off to the dorm hallway.

I didn't expect to be fitted so soon, but I needed something to distract myself from the foreboding sense of doom that lingered over my person like an overcast shadow. I really didn't feel up to going to this formal event, but I feared knowing what that bear might do to me if I didn't show my face, so I went along with it for the time being.

We walked together in almost peaceful silence, the pageant queen seemingly affixed on tidying up her looks as she pulled out a small black mascara wand and pink heart shaped compact mirror from her skirt pocket and began fixing her makeup.

From the looks of her, she doesn't seem like the best company to keep, given how brash and prissy she's been so far. Then again, I can't really speak on anyone else here, since I just met them, so I will keep those thoughts to myself.

"Do I strike up a conversation with her?" I thought to myself, fidgeting with my teddy bear's neck ribbon delicately, "Would she end up doing most of the talking? Would I sound like a weirdo to her? Do I even want to engage in conversing with her?"

"What's with that weird look on your face, creep," she looked at me, an appalled expression plastered on her flawless countenance as the dark highlighter around her eyes emphasized her disgust even more, "Don't think just because I'm talking to you, that you get to cop a feel later."

"Huh!? I'm n-not thinking about t-that…" my cheeks flushed red, and the awkwardness skyrocketed between us, "I uh...wanted to s-see if uh….you uh...chat with me!?"

The words blurted out of my mouth like a firework, bursting with energy and surprising Aphrodite as she snapped her mirror shut, almost dropping it to the floor. If she didn't see me as awkward then, this moment solidified her suspicions of me tenfold.

"What is up with you?" she expressed vehemently, baffled by my outburst, "Whatever though, Lev seems to adore you, so I will humor you for a while." She twisted the mascara cap back on the tube and stuffed it and the mirror back into her pockets.

"G-Great…." I stuttered for a moment, pausing to choose my next words carefully.

* * *

 **Should I chat with Aphrodite?**

 **[Yes, it might put her in a good mood]** \ No, she's gonna make it all about herself

* * *

Since I couldn't find a way out of this tension, I might as well make the best out of a terrible situation and get to know my fellow captives in the meantime. If I'm going to survive this inevitable disaster, I might as well make the most out of it, even if I am going to be shooting in the dark with some of them.

"Whatever you want to talk about, make it snappy," she snapped her fingers to grab my attention, "Eww, I'm getting wrinkles from just being near you."

"O-Oh uh..right, sorry," I apologized quickly, clearing my throat momentarily, "Where do I start…"

Oh boy, here goes nothing.

 **Kazumi** : W-What a-are your hobbies? D-Do you uh...have any interests outside of pageants, Aphrodite?

 **Aphrodite** : Ooh you want to know more about me? Why didn't you just say so before, silly goose!

 **Kazumi** : You uh….didn't let me speak b-before.

 **Aphrodite** : Hahaha you're too funny, but alright. I'm always happy to grace anyone's ears with my passions and what drives me as a person!

 **Kazumi** : Y-yeah right….

 **Aphrodite** : So I totally love fashion design, it's what Lev and I share together, that's why we're making the outfits and have so much in common. I also love dancing and singing, especially to my favorite songs from my fav groups such as Quintet Melody and Tiny Remix!

 **Kazumi** : I s-see...you're like some k-kind of pop m-m-music enthusiast, hehe…

 **Aphrodite** : Oh don't kid yourself, I definitely am! I'm also into practicing kung fu as well. Hyah!

 **Kazumi** : Oh my, t-that's surprising…not what I e-expected to be honest.

 **Aphrodite** : A girl's gotta be prepared in case a fan gets too grabby or another bitch wants to steal my crown. Let me tell you, it's happened way too often for my liking and too close for comfort.

 **Kazumi** : I suppose that's t-true…

 **Aphrodite** : On top of being the best pageant queen eva! I love karaoke too, getting to hear everyone cheer for me as I finish a climatic solo! It breathes life into me, kinda like a drug, but a good one and not those nasty cigarettes people like to smoke!

 **Kazumi** : That sounds n-nice….I've never done k-karaoke before.

 **Aphrodite** : Ugh really, you're truly missing out. Although judging from how you dress, I'm not surprised at all. From the looks of it, you must spend a lot of time studying, reading or whatever nonsense you nerdy types are into.

 **Kazumi** : Umm…I'm no-

 **Aphrodite** : So anyway let me tell you more about myself! I also love….

 **Kazumi** : …..

* * *

 **Aphrodite Zhang's Profile Card: 1/5**

 **Note** : She seems like any other teenage girl, her love for pop music, singing and dancing must have inspired her love for fame and attention. It kinda makes more sense now.

* * *

As I continued to listen to the pageant queen drone on and on about herself as if I were writing her auto-biography, we arrived at Lev's room shortly after. I noticed that his door was left open ajar slightly, it seemed that he kept it that way so he can get through these clothing fits faster, which made a lot of sense, if he's handling such a big project.

"Oh good we're here!" Aphrodite smiled widely, clapping her hands eagerly as she pushed the door open, "Oh Levvie, I brought him for you!"

I trailed behind Aphrodite as she strolled in casually to greet the fashion designer himself, who was already at work sewing what looked to be someone's else dress. His room was pretty much the same, except his sewing tables were covered in multicolored fabrics that were cut unevenly into long strips and resting near his sewing machine.

I noticed he had grabbed about two more black mannequins, this time male ones and a few formal suits were resting on each one. Each suit looked perfectly hand tailored, not a seam was exposed nor were there any holes or rips to be seen, almost as if it was made by magic or by singing talking animals overnight.

"Ah, there you two are!" he greeted us, a few sewing needles between his teeth as he stuck them inside a pincushion around his left wrist, "Lovely, thank you so much Aphie dear!"

"Anytime Lev," she endearingly cooed at him, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to rummage through my closet to find the perfect outfit for the party." She giggled playfully, "Plus I need to converse with the other girls, I'd so hate to match outfits or accessories with any of them! That would be such a fashion fail."

"No cat fights now," Lev chuckled, feeding some purple fabric into the machine slowly, "All you queens deserve nothing but the best. And I can't have anyone trifling over clothes of all things."

"You said it girl, later! Bye Kazaki," she skipped out of his room energetically.

"It's K-Kaz- and she's gone," I whimpered, failing to correct her as she left, "W-What a handful…"

"Oh don't get so flustered now, Kazumi dear," Lev rose from his seat, approaching me while wiping some sweat from his forehead, "Models like her are all very picky and indecisive, they'll chase after whatever trend makes them stand out from the others, not realizing that they all look stunning in their own right, but c'est la vie." He brushed aside a lock of his pink hair.

"Uh…" I mumbled, confused by his minor ramblings, "Y-You wanted to s-s-see me?"

"Ah yes, thank you for reminding me," he smiled, heading over to his sewing table and pulling out something from his drawer, "I just needed to compare these cool fabrics against you to see what works best for your style!"

He grabbed a few colorful square fabric strips from inside and began comparing them to my complexion. The shades of blue, purple, teal, violet, lavender and green made me feel anxious as he placed them near my pale skin. Even though he was doing his job, I felt like he was secretly judging me even more than last time I walked into his room.

"So many options…" Lev muttered to himself, "So little time to choose, but I think this color would work best for you! What do you think?"

He then directed my attention to this dark royal purple colored strip as he placed it against my shirt. He looked rather ecstatic, as if he just discovered a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

"I uh...g-guess," I nodded meekly, lacking any fashion savvy of my own, "W-Whatever works for you…"

"Come now Kazumi," he looked disappointed at my indifference, "I'm not the one wearing this, you need to have an opinion of your own. Do you want me to make you this suit or not?"

"I uh...y-yes!" I said firmly, afraid to upset him even more than I already had, "Please, sorry for y-yelling."

"God you are too adorable for words," he winked at me, "I already have your measurements from the other day, so there's not much else needed of you."

I felt bad for wasting Lev's time, even though he was the one who asked me to be here. The anxiety wrapped me in an insecure blanket of emotions as I kept thinking how I had offended him, even though I had never wronged him before in the few short days I've known him.

I wanted to make it up to him, even if I wanted to leave as fast as possible and avoid future embarrassment.

* * *

 **Should I make small talk with Lev?**

 **[Yes, he's doing this for you, humor him]** / No, he seems busy, I'll leave him be

* * *

"Ummm Lev…" I calmly muttered out, afraid he might not hear me clearly.

"Yes?" he looked up at me, eyes now affixed as I started sweating nervously, even though I was the one who instigated the conversation, "Did you forget something? Did you change your mind on the color of your suit?"

"No, not r-really…" I shook my head, "I just wanted to….talk w-with you."

"I see, well I can spare you a few minutes anyway," he turned off his sewing machine, "Go right ahead. Ask me whatever your heart desires."

Alright, here we go, no stopping now.

 **Kazumi** : Do you….uhm have uh….what are your h-hobbies?

 **Lev** : Oho ho~ Kazzie dear, I didn't expect you to be the type to be so upfront, but very well, I don't mind a minor distraction. I'm flattered if anything~

 **Kazumi** : Mmmm…

 **Lev** : Well, in between working on the latest fashion pieces and consulting with high end clients, I've spent most of my free time studying a lot of other things. Those include business principles, business management, accounting, sewing and even foreign languages.

 **Kazumi** : Oh wow….that's n-neat.

 **Lev** : Yep, I can read, speak and write in six languages, not just Japanese alone. I even know English, Russian, Italian, French and Spanish as well.

 **Kazumi** : Oh my g-g-goodness, that's impressive…

 **Lev** : Well, when you own a famous fashion company like me, you do get millions of clients both from home in Siberia and even in foreign countries like Japan or the US, so one must be prepared in the absence of a translator. Especially if someone decides to shit talk you behind your back in their native tongue.

 **Kazumi** : W-Woah sounds nifty….I can only speak Japanese and read some E-English….

 **Lev** : We all have to start somewhere honey. Some are more adept than others. I just call it basic survival in such a cutthroat business, let me tell you, I have so many horror stories to tell that we could be here all week.

 **Kazumi** : Sounds i-intense….

 **Lev** : You have no idea, but that's all I'll say for now, thank you for asking by the way. I appreciate it.

 **Kazumi** : S-Sure….you're welcome.

* * *

 **Lev Moroz' Profile Card: 1/5**

 **Note** : His line of work has not only given him business skills, but also worldly experience. He's a very knowledgeable and sharp person, which probably helps in the competitive fashion world.

* * *

"Now run along now," he instructed, heading back to his design desk, "I have about twenty or so more outfits to design, including mine for the party, toodles~"

"A-Alright, bye Lev…" I waved to him, walking out of his room feeling good for once.

"Oh and leave the door open as you head out," he remarked, feeding another outfit through his sewing machine, "Business sure is booming!"

I acknowledged his words as I left the room, leaving the door slightly open as I made my way back into the dorm hallway. It felt nice to have someone custom design something for me, even if the situation wasn't the most ideal. I somewhat felt a bit guilty for making him do this, but he offered and you shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth as they say.

It was then that I started to wonder if whoever I was, before this all happened, had the same luxuries or if I was in some loving happy home before being kidnapped. I'd like to imagine that somewhere out there, my parents, or whoever I lived with, were worried sick about me, if they were actively looking for me or were crying for my return home or something akin to that.

All I knew was that I had this one name, Kazumi Toriyako, which for all I knew, could have been the name of someone else entirely and I was just impersonating them, stealing their life altogether. What if my recurring memory flashes were somehow ingrained in me and were fabricated by some evil puppet master?

What if these aren't my real memories and someone is just planting them in my brain like some form of psychosomatic mind manipulation or something similar. Who am I to really say if who I was, was who I really am? All I know is that I just have to keep using this name until something else pops up in my head, kind of like a placeholder for the time being.

"Kazumi…." I mumbled to myself, pondering on that name for a brief moment, "Why does their n-name sound so…..familiar?"

"Excuse me," a voice seeped in, interrupting my thoughts.

I turned around and saw Nomi standing a few feet from me, in a very hustled and somewhat busy disposition. She was holding four thin glass flower vases in both of her hands, held loosely in place by her skinny arms, struggling to keep them balanced in her grip as she looked a bit frantic.

"Oh N-Nomi, hi," I awkwardly greeted her, noticing her fumbling with the vases, "Umm..let me help y-you."

"Thanks…" she said curtly, handing me two of the vases as I shoved my teddy bear into the open zipper portion of my backpack, with its head and torso sticking out.

The glass vases had very thin necks, so I hugged them by the round bases to avoid accidentally dropping them and I took notice of the beautiful swirled glass sea kelp design. I assumed she got them from the storage room the others mentioned, probably to put the flowers inside as decorations for the party.

"Follow me…" she said bluntly, walking ahead to her dorm room garden, "Be careful."

"Okay…" I trailed behind her, keeping a firm yet soft grip on the two vases.

If I had to pick a few people from this entire group, who didn't make me worry or constantly panic, one of them would be Nomi. Granted I barely knew her and she's done nothing wrong to me or has made a grand impression so far, meaning I couldn't really call her reliable just yet. She seemed decent enough, a little shy and cold at first, but I'm one to talk. I'm not the best speaker out there, so it's not my place to judge.

"We're here…" she muttered out quietly, "Watch your face."

I nodded in response as we eventually arrived at her room. The silence between us was casual at best, but it felt weird to not at least ask her how she was doing, given all that's happened so far. I guess I should keep quiet for now, she's probably still in shock.

She unlocked her door using the Monopad she pulled from her fur coat and nudged the door open with her elbow, so as not to drop the vases she had. The gardener used her foot to kick the door open as I followed suit and headed inside the humid outdoor garden. I felt the heat brush against my face as I entered, forgetting how cozy her room was compared to the others.

Her room didn't look much different than last time, bar some flowers wilting and budding, along with some rotten fruit and vegetables being composted and turned into fertilizer for her other earthy raw smell entrenched my senses as I smelt the decomposition eating away at the wasted produce, it was an unusual, but oddly pleasant smell.

She then nudged her head over to a silver movable cart with wheels on the bottom. I took notice, probably letting me know where to put the vases.

"Watch these for me," she told me, placing the vases on the cart neatly in vertical order, "I'll gather the appropriate flowers in the meantime."

"A-Alright…" I nodded, keeping a somewhat focused eye on the cart, as I rested the other two vases next to hers, "T-Take your time…"

The gardener trudged through the wet muddy gardens, removing her fur coat and putting it off to the side to reveal more of her tanned almost fair complexion. Her skinny healthy arms waded through the green shrubs and leaves as she perused each narrow crevice for the right type of flower, inspecting each one's color, which one had brown leaves and which ones were still blooming.

Her black tank top was drenched in small amounts of sweat and I noticed her look back at me with a cold stare as I whipped my head back instinctively. My cheeks were flushed bright red, probably from how sunny and hot her room was, but I could almost feel her staring, as I nervously looked back to see her picking more flowers.

"Woah...T-That's dedication," I gazed at the vast floral fields, almost envious of her work as I then directed my gaze at the silver cart and wiped some sweat from my brows.

Aside from the four aforementioned glass vases, there appeared to be two flowers resting inside pots, both a brilliant shade of purple and sporting lavender hair like vines and white spinal points sprouting within the center of the two flowers. The stems were sticking out of the brown, cracked pots as the fresh dirt smell enriched the air's scent with an earthy natural aroma, similar to a countryside pasture.

They looked almost alien from any flower I've seen before. I hovered over them, observing their beauty in awe as I turned to see Nomi with a white lily bouquet in her arms, appearing out of nowhere like a ninja. The mask covering her mouth hid most of her face, but her eyes expressed surprise as she looked almost annoyed by what I was doing, whereas I was baffled by how she moved around so silently.

"What are you doing?" she asked me curiously, swatting my hand away from them, "Don't touch, I need to plant them."

"I-I'm sorry!" I apologized almost immediately, rubbing the palms of my hands tenderly, "T-They're just so….beautiful."

"T-thank you," she looked happy, some semblance of blush forming on her tanned cheeks, "Passion flowers or Maypop as some call them."

"Huh?" I cocked my head, confused by what she meant, "O-Oh right, the purple flowers."

"Passiflora incarnata, or passion flowers are used in herbal remedies around many continents, they're a very delicate flower..." she explained, sounding more professional than she did before, "It's used to help with insomnia and sleeping problems when brewed into a liquid."

"A-Ah...I see," I sweatdropped, turning to the flowers again and keeping a safe distance from them, "A-Anyway uhm...Did you f-find the right flowers f-for the formal...I mean d-dinner party?"

"Yes….these," she presented the white lilies to me, holding them by their green stems, almost presenting them like a loving gift, "P-Please put them inside one of the jars and add a touch of water to each one."

"Alright…" I said, feeling even more embarrassed than before.

I received the flowers as she headed back into the field to pick some more, holding a pair of sharp, metal garden shears in her gloved dirty hands. I rested the snowy white bouquet on the tray, grabbing one of the four vases at a time and filling each halfway with water. I then rested the lily bouquet into the first vase.

Nomi did the same with the others, she went to and fro to grab more and I helped her arrange them evenly in each vase, sprucing up the curled ends of each flower as she took a spray bottle and sprinkled some water droplets on each flower petal. It was amazing how much work went into tending gardens, I guess these flowers are the fruits of labor so to speak.

Within a few minutes, we had both finished the task. I wiped some more sweat from my brows as she put her fur coat back on, shaking the pollen out as I stretched once more, feeling the warm artificial sunlight drench my skin with much needed Vitamin D.

"T-Thank you...for the help," she politely said, a hint of satisfaction in her voice, "Help me carry these…p-please."

"You're w-welcome," I acknowledged her response, "Sure thing…"

We each picked up two vases and proceeded to leave her room, nudging the door open as I lightly pushed the door closed behind me. I didn't really hear the door slam shut, but when I looked back I saw it was left slightly ajar. I figured it'd be easier for her to get in and out of her indoor garden room faster, so I left it as is and didn't think much of it.

I walked alongside Nomi to the dining room and we both came back to see some it was halfway set up with party supplies and decorations lining the walls and tables of the large room. Things seemed to have been progressing smoothly from the looks of it, which was surprising given how contentious it had gotten a few hours earlier.

Monotide and Inuyari didn't inspire confidence, but everyone seemed to be working with each other in a somewhat harmonious fashion. Well most of them from what I could tell.

Yoshikazu and Vivienne were both together, chatting with each other in the center of the room, most likely discussing the plans for the party being the de facto co-organizers. The auctioneer, despite having been equally anxious as everyone else, maintained a calm disposition, judging from how focused he was as he began jotting down some notes on a wooden clipboard and the trader wheeled her wheelchair closer to see what he was doing as she pointed at several things and debated some ideas.

Lou teased Wayne by wrapping him up in a royal blue ribbon streamer, looking like an overdressed mummy. The knitter, despite being the butt of the joke, seemed to enjoy it from how much he was laughing and giggling, alongside the roleplayer who seemed more invested in playing with the ribbons and pennants than actually decorating. She playfully skipped around as she randomly stuck colorful posters and streamers up in no particular order.

Moriko was all by herself, standing by as she deliberated whether to place some porcelain dolls on seperate table stands covered in dark green cloth. The doll maker held two creepy looking Victorian gothic dolls in her arms, positioning each one on each stand, before getting stopped by Yoshikazu as he tried persuading her from not doing it. She simply posed menacingly and retreated, stuffing the dolls inside an empty cardboard box and looking expressionless but grumpy.

Terrence and Stella both went in and out of the kitchen, the door swinging behind them as they brought out large silver trays of food covered with silver tray covers and rested them on the same long white table from breakfast a few hours ago.

The pub manager's cheeks were flushed a healthy red color, most likely from cooking all the food as she fixed back her purple hair bun from getting too loose as messy strands perched on the sides of her cheeks. The communicator in the meantime ran back into the kitchen to grab more food trays, eagerly excited as he kept the same ever present smile on his face as he did before.

Dragomir, Torakusu, Sato and Kimiya were all lugging boxes around, opening them up and resting random assorted goods on multiple large round tables.

Drago demonstrated his beastly strength by lifting two heavy looking boxes with his arms holding them up, the zoologist dropped them on the ground and used his machete to cut them open, effortlessly opening each one like a Christmas present.

Tora, on the other hand, spent more time cheering him on, lifting a few miniscule plastic bags from storage and resting them on the same table as well, the sniper seemed content, even if he was perturbed by the situation. He did make plenty of side gazes towards the other girls in the room, some of them taking note as he pretended to lift some heavy looking boxes that were opened and possibly empty. I couldn't help but feel bad for him, even though he looked just fine.

Kimiya grumpily mumbled to himself, fiddling with one particular heavy looking box that was twice his size, as he messily scattered decorations and supplies on the table haphazardly. The ice sculptor seemed a bit too proud of himself as he flicked the side of his nose confidently, but the swelling of his reddened and creased palms told a different story entirely.

The lifeguard on the other hand, looked worried for him, hovering over him and making sure he was alright. Sato sweatdropped and ended up helping him in the end by neatly arranging the items on the table in a more manageable order. The ice sculptor was irritated by this, but kept his behavior in check, noting Vivienne giving him a particular blunt stare. Sato seemed even more annoyed, but kept a calm front, having been the most outspoken one against this entire formal dinner idea.

As I glanced around the dining room once more, shockingly I noticed Akio standing all by himself, leaning up against the wall next to the double door entrance Nomi and I had emerged from. The gambler looked extremely displeased, probably forced to help as I noticed Iena approaching him with a disappointed look plastered on her face.

The judge appeared to be arguing with him, but he zoned her out, rolling his eyes at her and licking what appeared to be a strawberry lollipop in his mouth with a smug smile on his face.

The only ones who weren't present were Ushio, Sakai, Yumeji and Astatine. I knew Lev and Aphrodite were busy doing their own things, since I just came across them, so I didn't question their absence.

Sakai was probably preparing the others for their scheduled haircut sessions, which only made me fear what he'd do to them like what he did to me. I could never feel easy around the hair stylist even if his skills are unparalleled and he did do a good job at cutting my hair, something about him just creeped me out, not just his attitude, but his person in general.

Ushio, while I didn't know much about her, was probably averse to helping out, so she must have been inside her room or lounging around somewhere, most likely bored. The surfer seemed to be one of the few people who didn't readily join in the party planning, which made a lot of sense now in hindsight. If anything, she seemed to have taken the rational choice, even if no one really seemed to notice her or care.

Yumeji told me earlier she was going to take a nap, so I didn't want to hassle her any further. The oneirologist struck me as both inquisitive, but somehow lazily motivated, which could explain why she was off napping instead of helping. It's almost funny how she was able to talk her way out of helping, almost comical.

Astatine, however, was the one I was the most curious about. Ever since Monotide granted the ethical hacker their very own android, it felt weird to see them not flying around the room and scanning the room for malicious viruses or whatever it was they did. I wonder how they were adapting to their new situation? It must be new for them, even if they are essentially a computer A.I.

I spotted Takara by the drinks table, mixing a large bowl of reddish blue, purple fruit punch in a giant crystal shaped clamshell designed bowl. The sailor seemed a bit too trigger happy with the punch, judging from the copious amounts of flavor packets and powder scattered on the floor, leaving such a large colorful mess, as if a unicorn started sneezing rainbow snot all over the floor.

"Ah! There you are Kazumi," Vivienne approached me,happy to see a familiar face, "Can you please keep an eye on Takara, we don't need any more complications than we already have. I'll take those vases from you."

"Oh y-yeah…" I handed the trader the flower bouquets as she and Nomi both went over to the decorations committee side, "L-Later…"

I shrugged my shoulders, hearing some minor joints pop and crack as I stretched to the ceiling. I guess this was my body telling itself that it was long overdue for some exercise. With less load to carry and fret about, I approached the sailor, nervously observing the concoction she had brewed in front of me.

"Aye welcome back laddie!" she eagerly beamed a wide toothy smile at me, like a witch brewing a suspicious looking potion, "Care to try some of my homemade fruit punch?"

I furrowed my brow anxiously at the punch in front of me. It was a darker shade of red than how fruit punch should normally look. There were bits of chopped up ice cubes floating near the top of the colorful concoction, with white sparkly sugar particles messily strewn across the top layer of the punch, sugar overload from the looks of it. I glimpsed to see something bubble inside the drink, a heat trail emerging from inside.

"N-No thank you…" I shook my head, fearful for both my taste buds and my physical well being, "I'm n-not thirsty."

"Suit yourself, but this drink will surely knock yer socks off, Kazumi!" she seemed a bit too proud of her recipe, "The others will love it!" she then stopped stirring it and glanced around, almost looking for someone, "Where be that sleep scientist lass, she'll be walking the plank for her slothful nature?"

"Y-You mean Yume…." I shakily responded, feeling almost sick smelling the pungent sugary stench of the liquid punch, "She's r-r-resting…..a bit t-tired she said."

"Avast ye! She sure pulled the wool over both of our eyes," Takara seemed slightly peeved from hearing that, "No matter, I'll make sure she gets a big dose of my special recipe by the time we commence! Hehehe. "

Poor Yumeji…..you have my future condolences.

"Excuse me, Kazumi," a strange yet formal voice said, as I felt a tap on my shoulder, "It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance once more."

I looked behind me, double taking at the person at first, before remembering at the last minute who it was. It was like remembering an old friend you hadn't seen since middle school, but it didn't take me long to figure out who it was.

"Oh Asta….h-hi umm…" I responded surprised by their android's appearance, "A-Are you f-feeling well?"

"All my functions in this new body seem to be working at full capacity," the ethical hacker responded, an eloquent formal tone escaping their robotic lips, "Nothing is amiss."

"O-Oh….that's good I guess…" I remarked, trying to put up a content smile.

It felt so weird to see Astatine in this new form of theirs, or should I say hers. Asta looked just as radiant and marvelous since the moment I first laid eyes on their new form. Her twin tailed glitter raven hair cascaded against her back perfectly, her dark black irises trained on me with a soft yet dazed look and she fiddled with the school jacket around her android's form as if it were a second new skin.

"I guess this new form of mine is going to take some time for myself and the others to get used to," she politely remarked, analyzing her hands and legs from top to bottom, "Such a scintillating, new experience. I don't even know where to start."

"I'll b-bet…" I shook my head, trying to get used to this as well, "Still, I never expected y-you to look so…..so.."

"Cute? Adorable? Very shiver me timbers?" Takara snickered, winking at me, "Don't be shy now Kazumi laddie! Tell er how you really feel."

"N-No….I uh…" flustered by her sudden input, my cheeks blushed bright red, "That's not the r-r-right word…" Ugh why does this always happen to me.

"I think you are referring to my new human form?" the hacker stoically looked at me, oblivious to my minor awkward outburst, "Are you ill? You look quite frazzled, Kazumi. Do you require an ice pack?"

"I uh…" I panicked in that moment, fumbling for the right words as Asta continued staring at me as if I were crazy while Takara gave me suggestive glances and weird gestures, "Umm…"

"How absolutely pathetic, you're one of those people," a smug deep voice entered the conversation, belonging to the gambler himself, "I figured you were a weirdo, but not that kind."

"N-No that's not it…" I shook my head, feeling a bit tipsy from all the embarrassment, watching the gambler's smile intimidate me like a schoolyard bully, "I uh….you look fine to me, A-A-Asta!"

The room got silent for a brief moment as the others took notice of the commotion amongst us. My body felt limp and lifeless, my face flushed, nerves numb and everyone staring at me like I was clinically insane. I just wanted to crawl into a hole and hide myself from anymore future shame, as I started shaking even more from social anxiety.

"Alright break it up you three," Tora intervened, swooping in to save the day, "Kaz, go help Kara with the drinks and I will deal with these two." The sniper resting his hands on my shoulders as he tried comforting me, "Just remember to breathe. It's totally normal for a kid your age to be interested in such a magnificent creature as Asta!"

"Okay…wait w-what?!" I breathed in and out slowly, feeling the pressure slowly building upon me like a heavy weight, "T-Tora…."

"Oh please, we were just harmlessly teasing him," Akio snorted, sucking more on his lollipop,, "He just can't take a joke is all. It's quite funny if you ask me."

"I don't recall anything being humorous in this situation," Asta gave the gambler a puzzled look, "Is this how humans usually interact? I have so much to learn."

"Asta baby," Torakusu approached her, sliding to her side as he put his arm around her shoulder like a slick playboy, "Let's you and I talk some more over there, and I'll teach you some social cues! Let's start off with the basics of human intimacy."

The sniper guided the hacker over to another section of the room while I was having a mini mental meltdown. I'm glad that he was able to quell the situation, even if I was a little worried about whatever he was going to teach the hacker.

"Are you always such a hot mess?" Akio sized me up, looking at me like a disappointed father who found out his son wanted to do theater instead of sports, "Whatever, that just makes it even more fun to see you squirm. Do make it an interesting display, Kazumi."

"W-What's….your d-deal…" I managed to huff out from exhaustion, "W-Why are you...so mean to me...?"

"Oh, so you finally decided to grow some balls and talk back, good," he shook his head, chuckling to himself as if he cracked a joke to an invisible crowd, "My deal is that you all are planning for something that is going to inevitably crash and burn. I'm just here to watch all of your weak attempts crumble before you and watch you all fall face first into disaster."

"Matey watch your tongue!" Takara removed herself from the drinks table and went toe to toe with the gambler, "Ye be playing with fire and hornswoggling your way to success. Keep your cards to yerself." She readied her hand over her blade holster.

"Oh no, I'm so scared," he sarcastically replied, feigning defeat by putting his hands up, "Have fun with your pirate punch. Looks like total sugary shit."

He then walked away from us, seeming both proud and even more cocky than before. His words were slimy and callous, marinated in smooth and cool words meant to throw us off.

Despite that, there was a part of me that couldn't help but feel slightly forewarned by his cryptic veiled ultimatums. What he was saying was rude and inconsiderate, but his logic seemed somewhat airtight in critical thinking, does he know if this plan will actually fail before it begins?

"M-Maybe we should..uh...remake the drinks?" I suggested nervously, breathing in deeply.

"Nonsense!" the sailor chimed in, "This here be my finest brandy to date." It seemed she failed to sense the same sugary odor I sniffed, "Come try some?"

Before I could muster up a clear and coherent response, Takara poured some of her goopy fruit punch into a red plastic cup and shoved it in my face. Her rattling jewelry and her general upbeat over the top demeanor freaked me out, but I didn't want to upset her, after she went through the trouble of sticking up for me earlier.

"O-Okay…" I yielded, accepting the cup from her and staring at the drink, seeing the powdery residue mingle with the liquids inside, "Mmm.."

I ended up taking one small sip of the drink, a pleased Takara watched me with anticipation as I felt the drink slowly slide down my throat. Its taste matched how overly sweet its smell was and felt a bit chewy like a gummy bear.

"Hmmm…" I gulped it down, resting the cup on a nearby table, "It's n-not bad- urk!"

Almost like an instant chemical reaction, once the drink entered my stomach it was game over for my digestive system. I coughed loudly, almost gurgling up saliva as I fell to my knees, hugging my stomach in pain.

"Kazumi, you alright!? What the hell happened!" Sato heard the noise, as I heard his footsteps approaching as he knelt down to my side, "Kara, what did you do?"

"Oi, I didn't do anything," she raised her arms up, accepting defeat with a disappointed frown, "He just drank the punch is all, I'm innocent I tell ye!"

"Oh gosh," Vivienne heard the noise and wheeled herself over to the sailor and I, "I knew putting her on drink detail was going to be a bad idea."

The others' footsteps grew bigger and bigger as some of them heard the commotion and saw me writhing in pain, and Takara pleading the fifth.

"Are you fucking trying to poison us, bitch?" Kimiya shouted out, looking even more agitated than before, "It's bad enough we have that bear and his little fuck buddy on our asses, you have to add this shit on top too!?"

"Kimiya please, let's not point the finger at anyone," Stella looked at the ice sculptor, shocked but also in disbelief, "Kazumi is not feeling well, he needs stomach medicine."

"I have some in the first aid kit, I brought it just in case," Sato said, clicking his tongue, "Let me grab it."

"Ooh pretty colors!" Wayne skipped merrily over to the punch bowl, staring at it in awe, "This looks like jello!" The knitter didn't notice the steam bubbles foaming out.

"I dare you to drink it Waynie!" Lou snickered mischievously.

"No!" Yoshikazu shook his head, standing in front of the roleplayer and the knitter, "We need to get rid of this punch and start a new batch. Where's Yumeji?"

"S-She's...urk...sleeping," I burped out, wincing in pain, "Too much s-s-sugar."

"Wow, she literally slept on the job," Dragomir noted, scratching his head, "I'd make ya a special smoothie, but it might be bad for your tummy issues."

"Yikes that looks disgusting," Terrence cringed, looking sickly at the goopy punch, "You could torture a man with that, like some kind of military grade poison."

"It'd be pretty effective at that..." Akio snidely interjected, morbidly curious as well.

"Thank you all for your assistance," Iena stepped in, sighing at the commotion in front of her, "Please get back to work, Sato and I will help Kazumi to the bathroom. Stella and Terrence, could you two go grab Yumeji and remake the drinks, please?"

"Of course! I'll go get her," Terrence agreed, heading out of the dining room in a flash.

"I'll go get the flavor packets…" Stella tiredly groaned, "I had a bad feeling this would happen."

"Kaz, here swallow this and drink some water," the lifeguard returned swiftly with a cup of water and a small green rubbery ball, "It's a special stomach medicine I got from a friend from overseas, I've used it with people who went swimming on a full stomach."

I shakily looked up, taking the pill, putting it in my mouth as I quickly gulped down the water to cleanse my palate. Never in my life had water tasted so good, but in that moment, it was pure relief.

"By the darkness," Moriko went over to the concoction, "I've not seen an elixir this fearsome in a good while," the doll maker seemed a bit too engrossed in it, eyeing it curiously, "I must know the recipe!"

"Please don't encourage this behavior," Vivienne reproached the tall girl, "Kimiya and Tora, can you two please help clean up this mess."

"The hell I will! Why the fuck do I have to clean up after that looney pirate?" He adamantly opposed this idea.

"Aye aye!" Torakusu immediately jumped in, grabbing a black broom and dustpan, "Come with me Kimmy!" the sniper shoved the broom in the ice sculptor's hand and dragged him along.

'W-Wait no- fuck!" against his best interest, Kimiya was unwittingly forced to help clean.

"Now that that's squared away," Iena smiled proudly, smirking almost, "Drago, please help Kazumi to his room."

"Ya got it!" he gave a big thumbs up, approaching me from in front, "Up we go little Kaz! One monkey arm at a time."

The zoologist helped me up from my weakened state, lifting me up and resting me on his back as my arms interlaced around his strong neck. He felt warm, probably from all the heavy lifting, as I rested against his back and I drowsily fell in and out of sleep.

"I'll come with you," Asta walked up to us, "I would like to monitor his condition for further research on human illnesses and common ailments."

"The more the merrier~" Dragomir chuckled.

"I'll go knit a comfy blanket for him, let's go Lou Lou!" Wayne eagerly smiled, grabbing on to the roleplayer's arm.

"No tugging, I'm coming!" she seemed peeved, but happily went along with him, "Feel better soon Kazzie!"

"Mrgh-urp!" I gagged loudly, clenching my lips shut as I felt the bile rise up.

"Let's just get him to a bathroom quickly!" Sato alerted the others, "Yoshikazu, can you handle the rest from here?"

"Of course, you guys just focus on this for now," the auctioneer instructed calmly.

With his approval, the zoologist, ethical hacker, lifeguard and judge all rushed me out of the dining room and to the nearest bathroom. We made our way back to the dorm hallway as Dragomir rushed me inside the boys bathroom, with Sato accompanying him.

Asta nearly went in with us, before Iena stopped her in her tracks. Inside, Drago rested me down from his back, as I knelt over the closest toilet stall. Sato kept watch by the toilet door, giving me some privacy as he and the zoologist stood outside.

"Just let it all out bud," Sato said as he made his way out.

Without going into too much gory detail, I puked. I thought I'd been in there for a while, given how many chunks I blew up, but when I finished the deed, I zombie walked over to the sinks. I noticed my backpack wasn't on my person, which meant the others probably took it off of me.

I turned on the cold faucet, rinsing my mouth clear of the leftover acidic bile and looked at myself in the mirror. I sleepily blinked twice, the redness in my eyes flared, my nostrils dripping and my stomach processing the minty chill of the medicine.

I washed my face once more, wiping my face with a fresh clean towel and disposing of it in a nearby basket. I left the bathroom and was greeted by the four of them, alongside Sakai and Ushio.

"Aww he's finally back," the hair stylist cooed slyly, "Did you go number one or two?"

"Sakai please be a little more sensitive," Sato scolded him, "Are you feeling any better?"

"Y-Yeah...just sleepy," I yawned loudly, "W-Where's my bag?"

"Here," a hand extended to me, holding my owl backpack in her hand, "Just take it."

Ushio stood there, my bag dangling in her fingers as I nodded thanks in response. The surfer looked displeased from being roped into my mess.

"T-Thank-"

"Don't mention it, dweeb," she cut me off before I could finish, " Bye."

She then left immediately, heading back to her room grumpily. For a glimmer of a second, I could spy a small smile on her face. Maybe it was my mind playing tricks on me, but I thought I saw something like that.

"You need to get some rest," Iena told me, almost as if she were my big sister, "I'll leave the rest of you to it. Sakai, I would like to get a quick haircut."

"Fine, I would have loved to see more of this shitshow, but that works too," he shrugged, going along with the judge, "Get well soon~"

The two headed off to his room, meanwhile the other three helped me over to my room. Asta trailed behind the two guys, holding my backpack for me, taking out my Monopad as she swiped it over the door sensor. The four of us entered my room, as I headed in front of them, taking off my shoes and resting them on the crescent moon mat and tucking myself into bed.

"This room is…." Sato gazed around, sweatdropping at what he saw, "Not what I expected...kinda childish."

"Is this what constitutes a "boys room"?" Asta looked around, observing every book shelf and the toys inside.

"Nah, my room growing up was nothing like this," Drago stated, scratching his cheek, "Although I did live in a cave for a while….so I'm not too sure."

"It's not a traditional styled boy's bedroom, Asta," the lifeguard sighed, giving the hacker a more vague answer, "But we should let Kaz rest for now."

"Affirmative," she did as he said, robotically waving back to me as I saw her leave my room, "I, how should you 'love you', is that the right response?"

"W-Wha?" I blurted out, gripping on my blanket covers tightly.

"Did Tora teach you that?" Sato rubbed the sides of his temples, "I'll need to talk with him later, let's go guys."

The three of them left my room, the lights inside dimmed as I stared up at the sea creatures passing me by above my head. Seeing such pretty colorful fish soothed me in a way that nothing else did. Hearing the bubbles and waves crash and gurgle was relaxing to my senses, as I started to drift off to sleep.

It was almost….nostalgic….Why was that the case?

* * *

 **A/N** : Hi everyone, I hope you all are well during this stressful time, don't forget to wash your hands, hydrate, social distance and stay safe out there. To help alleviate some boredom, I've decided to treat you guys to a special two-fer chapter update for this story, not just for that but also to make up for lost time.

This will be part one, part two is coming out most likely in April.

For those curious, I was absent for almost a year due to my college classes, I had a few minor mental breakdowns here and there and moving houses was even more stressful, so that's why I pretty much took 2019 to recuperate and better myself. Never expected 2020 to turn out so hectic, but here we are XD.

That being said, I hope you guys liked this chapter, thank you to all that participated in the FTE poll, and it seemed our favorite pageant queen and the lovely fashion designer both won the first round. I know their creators might not be around, but I hope I did their characters justice, it was so much fun to write their interactions with Kazumi. Thank you to their creators for sending them my way.

Also shoutout to these other two creators, my friends Orlando Butler and OceanAstro. They too have SYOC and I would love it if you guys could send OC their way. Show them some support. Both are Danganronpa SYOC, so hit them up.

 **Dead Zeppelin - Orlando Butler**

 **Danganronpa: The Monsters Within Us - OceanAstro**

With that said, I will see you guys in the second update, where I will release the next chapter finishing up chapter one free time events and then we can get to the juicy and main portion of every good Danganronpa story, the murder mystery! Ooh so exciting :3.

I hope you all are healthy and well and happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alike, I love you all and I wish you all the best, see you in part two, bye bye!


	8. Chapter 1: Playful Angelfish

**There is a poll on my profile to vote for the first SWBC victim of Chapter one, be sure to pick who you think will die first. Have a nice day and enjoy the chapter, guys.**

* * *

Sleeping soon after feeling ill proved to be even more trouble than it was. My stomach was in knots and I felt every gland in my body writhe in pain from the copious amounts of sugar I imbibed earlier, it was enough to scare a diabetic person into sugar abstinence and start rethinking their life choices.

I tossed and turned in my blanket covers, wriggling around to find some semblance of peace as I looked up at the dimly lit ceiling. The angelfish that swam by decorated the ocean's waters with a radiant, underwater light show, bright colors shone through the reflective glass layer separating me and the water, wrapping me securely in place.

I wanted to stare for hours and hours, but laying down while in pain continued to irritate my stomach even more. I sat up from my resting position, breathing in and out slowly, letting the soothing waves' melody distract me from the inner turmoil my digestive system was warring on itself.

I grabbed my Monopad, which was laying next to my side and opened up the user home page interface. There wasn't really much displayed on the screen aside from a few select tabs behind a glistening 3-D rendering of an ocean wave crashing against sandy shores, a very 3-D wallpaper that seemed apropos for my situation. The three tabs I saw were labelled 'Profile', 'Messages' and 'Rules'.

"I didn't know w-we had rules…" I yawned loudly, the gurgling in my stomach intensifying greatly, "Now I'm even more afraid...w-why do we even have r-rules in the first place?"

Curious as to what the app was, I tapped on the icon as it opened up to another watery graphic background, the backdrop was black as night, but the inner borders had words written in a disgustingly bright blue shade. A starfish insignia lazily rested near the top left of the curled 'Rules' lettering and there appeared to be multiple regulations at that from the looks of it.

* * *

 **Rule 1** : Each student is allowed to roam and wander the aquarium and it's many facilities to their heart's content. However, trying to find a way out or leaving through any secret entrance is expressly forbidden.

 **Rule 2** : Night time is from 8PM to 7AM, sleeping anywhere other than the assigned dorm rooms is strictly prohibited and will result in immediate disciplinary reprimand. If you are bunking with someone else, make sure to stay protected, kiddos.

 **Rule 3** : Violence or harm of any manner towards I, Monotide or Inuyari, will be dealt with in kind, you get one warning in the form of these rules, besides it's my job to punish her, not you all. To make this rule impartial, myself and Inuyari will not hurt or directly involve myself with any students, especially in future murder cases.

 **Rule 4** : A student who kills another student is eligible for a surefire escape from this aquarium, but only if they succeed in fooling everyone in the upcoming class trials.

 **Rule 5** : The student who kills another student is referred to as the 'blackened' and innocent students are referred to as the 'spotless'. It's a game of cat and mouse and it's your job to outwit the other in a game of logic, riddles and death.

 **Rule 6** : If the blackened is able to outsmart everyone and get them to vote for the wrong person, then they will have won the trial and everyone else who guessed wrong will face immediate punishment, while the sole killer escapes.

 **Rule 7** : If the spotless students guess the correct culprit, then only the blackened will face punishment and the rest of the students continue to live their communal lives here at the aquarium in peace.

 **Rule 8** : Once a murder occurs, a short period of time for an investigation will commence and the students are given an allotted time to search for clues as to whodunnit before the trial starts proper. Attendance is compulsory, except if you're dead, no questions about it!

 **Rule 9** : Participants are allowed to kill up to two students. Anything more than that number will result in an immediate mistrial and the blackened would be punished for greedily hoarding all the kills, because how boring is that am I right.

 **Rule 10** : A body discovery announcement will play when three or more students discover a corpse for the very first time.

 **Rule 11** : Further rules will be added over the course of the fishy fun days if I so choose, how fun.

* * *

"T-These are oddly s-specific…" I scratched the back of my neck, soaking in all the rules at once, "W-What's a c-class trial?"

Unsure of what each rule meant, I perused them carefully, grasping each one with a loose definition and understanding that they all entailed the same thing. Someone, or multiple people was going to die, be it through resistance or the most reprehensible act in human history.

Sweat trickled down my bony spine as I looked at the last rule and got even more worried. Who's to say that what Monotide was espousing was the truth? What if he just removes a rule he finds inconvenient for him later down the line? What if he does get involved in something nefarious and we're just too powerless to stop him? It seems quite unfair.

I wrapped myself in my purple covers, feeling both clammy and cold at the same time, as if I was suffering from a fever or cold hybrid. My anxiety spiked even more, my hands started shaking and my heart palpitated faster than ever before. It felt like I was trapped in a horror movie, with the imposing sense of dread looming over me as I started to question all my assumptions about everything so far.

Before I could process anything else, I heard a rather loud knocking at my door. I almost fell out of my bed as I shakily tossed my blanket to the side of me and lingered my way over to the door, shakily hovering over the handle as I hesitated to open it.

"Breathe….remember to breathe.." I continued to innerly tell myself, finally twisting the door knob, "Y-Yes?"

"Kazumi?" a familiar chipper voice greeted me, sounding concerned, "You okay?"

I peered from the open corner of the door frame and saw Wayne standing there, eyeing me curiously with his doey hazel eyes. The knitter stood at my door, fidgeting with his hands hidden partially by his oversized sweater as he waited for me to respond.

"I g-guess…." I responded weakly, "J-Just can't sleep….stomach pains."

"Oh...I see, well I just wanted to see if you were alright," he perked up rather quickly, keeping a calm yet enthusiastic attitude the entire time, "I was thinking maybe I could knit you something else, to help you feel better?"

"Umm…" I stumbled over my words, unsure of how to respond as he continued looking at me like a frail puppy begging for table scraps, "T-That's sweet of you but uh…"

"I can make you fluffy mittens, a new scarf perhaps?" he endearingly lit up like a Christmas tree, "How's that sound to you?"

I pondered on his request for a short few seconds, nervously overthinking about how to proceed after reading the rules of the killing game. Wayne seemed harmless enough, but those rules didn't bode well for anyone, especially for me. Anyone could be a wolf in sheep's clothing and I really didn't feel safe leaving my room for anything else aside from using the bathroom or to get some food.

"I uh…." I reluctantly responded, "Su-"

"Awesomeness!" he pulled the door open rather swiftly, immediately taking my hand in his and dragging me out of my room, "Follow me, Kaz! Can I call you that?"

"W-Wha?!" I sputtered out, held against my will as even the tiny knitter seemed to have more strength in his hand than I did in my entire body, it was astonishing, "Y-Yeah but-"

"Butts are for sitting down on, silly pants," he cheerfully rebuked,"Come and let me show you more of my work, you're going to love what I have in store for you!"

"S-Slow down…" I stumbled over my footing as he continued to drag me along like a puppet on thin strings.

With little effort to sway him, we both arrived at his room, the same tiny pixel icon brandished on the front as he swiped his Monopad over the sensor. He let go of my hand as he opened his door and nudged me inside, like an overexcited toddler trying to get their parents into the toy store.

"I-I'm going…" I waved him off, walking inside of my own volition, remembering the same elderly sage smell his room emitted, "Q-Quit pushing…"

I headed inside, still remembering all the crocheted tapestries and simple homey decor that felt oddly comforting and almost nostalgic to see. It was like going to a family gathering and revisiting a childhood memory you once had of a time you were the happiest, which seemed to encompass Wayne's personality almost perfectly, too accurate if you ask me.

"Hiya Kazzie!" another voice greeted me, this time belonging to the roleplayer herself, "Waynie is teaching me how to knit! Isn't that cool?"

Lou sat on one of the orange sofas, holding a pair of silver knitting needles in her hands as she removed the panda hood, revealing her light brown hair. She seemed oddly calm, but still maintained her rather happy expressions as she fumbled around with pink yarn entwined in her fingers.

"S-Sounds fun…" I waved to her, taking a seat on the opposite sofa adjacent to her.

"Kaz here said he wants something stylish and new!" The knitter peered up from behind the couch I sat on, almost surprising me, "Whaddya say?"

"Oh uh…..I don't know," I half heartedly answered, "W-What do you t-think I would like? I'm uh...not really an e-expert on this."

"Hmm... maybe a pair of mittens would be cool!" he hopped over to the roleplayer's side and plopped on the couch, "Lou Lou did you finish your scarf already?"

"Uhuh," she smiled, presenting a pink and black striped knitted scarf in her hands, "How's this?"

"Woah, that's amazing!" he seemed enamored with her first attempt, almost as if she knew how to do this beforehand or maybe it was just beginner's luck, "You should take up knitting, you're a natural at it!"

"I'm good thanks, I'd much rather roleplay in a theater production," she remarked wittingly, booping the knitter on his nose, "Oh look at the time, my break's over, I need to go help Mori and the others! Bye Bye!"

Without a moment's notice, she skipped out of the room, leaving her scarf on the side as she hummed a tune to herself as she made her way out.

"So-"

"What color do you want your scarf to be, Kaz?" Wayne immediately asked, directing his attention to me as if I wasn't sitting here already, "I have purple, blue, green, ooh maybe a nice rich black color!"

His energy was intoxicating, almost rabidly so, as he began rifling through the large basket of multi-colored yarn. He tossed an orange ball to the side and dropped a grey one on the floor as he searched almost to the bottom of the yarn basket, until he stuck his hand deeper inside for the right one.

"W-What are you doing?" I asked, a red yarn ball rolled towards my knee as I sweatdropped nervously.

"Looking for the right shade of course!" he smiled widely, sifting his hand through more yarn, "Why?"

"N-No reason…" I awkwardly replied, "Did you see the r-rules?"

"Huh? What rules?" the knitter cocked his head, confused by what I was talking about, "Is someone playing a game? Is Kazu organizing a party game for the formal dinner?"

I guess he wasn't aware of the new rules that have been implemented yet. Wayne seemed to have been taking this ordeal rather lightly so far, he's always smiling and giggling like someone told him a funny joke on loop. Is this his way of coping with this intensely stressful situation?

"N-Nevermind…." I shook my head, gripping the fluffy arm of my teddy bear snugly.

Maybe I should get to know him like with Aphrodite and Lev. I guess it couldn't hurt, he doesn't seem like he'd tease me or look at me funny as if I was some weirdo, so it's worth a shot at least.

* * *

 **Should I chat with Wayne?**

 **[Sure, he might even like the company]** / Maybe not, he's a bit too hyper

* * *

"W-Wayne…" I began to talk.

"Yeah? Did you change your mind on the scarf idea?" he stopped rifling through the basket, "Ooh what about a cute little blanket! Maybe that could help?"

"N-No thank you…." I shook my head, "I w-want to get to k-know you some more. H-Hang out?"

"Huh really?" his eyes brightened like a light bulb, "You've always seemed so quiet and shy, but I love to meet and make new friends, so why not. Hit me with your best shot, Kaz!"

Well at least things are off to a good start so far.

 **Kazumi** : A-Aside from knitting, do you have any h-hobbies?

 **Wayne** : Hmm that's a toughie! Let me see…..hmmm maybe...Oh right!

 **Kazumi** : Yes?

 **Wayne** : I don't really have that many hobbies aside from knitting, but I do like to practice crocheting, that's kinda similar. I also love baking, but my favorite thing to make is bread funnily enough, hahaha.

 **Kazumi** : I didn't know t-that...who taught you?

 **Wayne** : My mom did, she's such an amazing chef, I love her homemade food! I miss her already, I wonder if she misses me?

 **Kazumi** : Sounds n-nice…..I don't k-know who my family is…

 **Wayne** : Aww really? Well it's not much, but I could bake you some baguettes some time, those are my favorites, mom taught me how to make them from scratch!

 **Kazumi** : I'd l-love to try some sometime….

 **Wayne** : I also really like rabbits, they're so fluffy and hippity hopping all over the place! Anything in the colors red or pink, those are so pretty! I also love knitting hats too!

 **Kazumi** : I s-see….I'd love to wear one of them…

 **Wayne** : I've made so many of them, I've even sold some to multiple charities for the elderly and orphans. Maybe I can make you a really cool owl shaped beanie!

 **Kazumi** : Why an owl?

 **Wayne** : Because you're such a hoot to be around! Get it?

 **Kazumi** : Hehehe…..funny. Kinda l-lame.

 **Wayne** : Anyways, this scarf isn't gonna knit itself, thanks for talking to me about this, Kazumi. You're such a good friend.

 **Kazumi** : You too….Wayne.

* * *

 **Wayne Fukumoto's Profile Card: 1/5**

 **Note** : He's extremely passionate about knitting, he's done a lot of DIY related crafts and even has fond memories of his family, he sounds like he has a good homelife.

* * *

"So what colors do you want for yours, Kaz?" he asked, picking up some loose yarn balls, "Have you decided yet?"

"I g-guess...purple and b-black?" I responded, eyeing the different colored balls carefully, "D-Does that work?"

"Of course, a bit somber and somewhat gothic, but those colors work perfectly," the knitter bobbed his head up and down excitedly, "I'll get started on it in a bit, it'll take me a while though."

"It's no big deal….take your time…" I chuckled softly at his manic disposition, "I'll leave you to it."

"Mhm, I hope you feel better soon!" he grabbed a black and purple yarn ball from the basket, "I'm so hyped for this dinner formal, or is it a party? I'm not sure what it is exactly, but I'm super excited nonetheless."

Seeing his face shine with such eager anticipation and brimming positivity was such a welcome breath of fresh air in this overall tense environment. Even if the knitter didn't understand the gravity of the situation he was in, granted I didn't get it either myself, it's nice to see that he's trying to distract himself with his talent and passions.

Maybe the others are doing the same as well, I imagine some of them don't have the resources to really hone their skills, but I guess helping with the party acts similar to one. I wonder if my talent, if I had one, was something worthwhile or interesting like theirs.

"See you around…" I waved to him, heading out of his room as I closed the door behind me.

"Later!"

Entering back into the dormitory hallway brought back even more uncertain feelings into my mind. While it was nice to take in the fishy and aquatic sights above me, just knowing that at any moment's notice a machine gun or some kind of trap could skewer me or pump me full of bullets coming out of the walls or the floor, didn't seem to jive well with me at all.

Why did the person running this facility choose this specific place in particular? In terms of security, this place doesn't really look any different from most sea life themed amusement parks. It feels like a part of someone's childhood memories, being displayed in real time, it felt so surreal and oddly familiar to me.

"Daydreaming in the halls?" a squeaky voice interrupted my inner monologue, "I would have figured you'd be off playing dress up with your so called friends."

"Who's there?" I turned around behind me, clutching my teddy bear feverishly.

"Why it's only me, you silly guppy."

Out of the blue appeared Monotide in all of his beary sea king presence, standing in front of me as he appeared out of the walls like some kind of ghostly poltergeist. I still couldn't get used to his overall look as a whole, and why he was dressed the way he was, it was almost hard to take him seriously.

"W-What do you w-want?" I nervously asked, afraid to hear his answer.

"Oh nothing, just wanted to do a routine check up on all my lovely little guppies," he snickered, his robotic cheeks blushing a bright pink color, "I assume you've read the rules, I take it?"

"I have…" I nodded, keeping a good few feet apart from the bear and I, "W-Why?"

"Such a good little boy you are," he smiled widely, his eyes glowing a bright crimson color, "I wish the others were as obedient and compromising as you. Everyone here is such a spoilsport, it's honestly quite disappointing, but almost cute in a sort of try hard manner."

"W-Why do we need r-rules to kill anyway?" I curiously asked, despite how morbid it sounded, "It doesn't make any s-s-sense at all."

"A silly question, will obviously get you a silly answer," he facepalmed, "If there's no order, then there will be chaos. If there's chaos, then all you brats will get the funny idea that you can revolt against me and break apart this little family of ours that I've so desperately tried to put together!"

"W-What do you m-mean by family exactly?" I continued to pepper the mascot with more questions, hoping he'd slip up somewhere.

"I'm glad you asked! You see I- wait a minute," the bear briefly paused, mischievously scheming as he rubbed his paws together, "Are you trying to get me to pull a Freudian slip?"

My skin went pale with fear as the bear completely saw through me, despite my lacking efforts to hide my true intentions. I knew getting answers from him was a pipe dream, so why did I think that moment would play out any differently, other than in my own head.

"N-No…ummm I….

"Tut tut, you pathetic little boy," the bear grimaced menacingly, "When I say to keep your mouth shut and do as you're told, you keep your fucking yap zipped and your nosy ass questions to yourself, understand!"

"I uh...y-yes sir!" I anxiously yelped out the answer before I could process his sudden aggression, "I d-do."

"Good, now then, I have one more treat for you darling ultimates," he playfully chuckled, "However it's going to be some time before I'm ready to present it, so do whatever you teens do and don't go getting any funny ideas now. Bye Bye!"

With that the bear vanished into thin air once more, leaving me by my lonesome as I anxiously stood in place, too afraid to move. How could something so droll and cartoonish say such hideous and cruel things? What is going on, I'm even more confused than I was before.

"Hey Kazumi," a voice interrupted my momentary panic attack, "Whatcha doing?"

I turned to see Terrence, walking over to me casually as he carried some plastic bags with him in his arms.

"H-Hi Terrence…." I gulped instinctively, trying to reel myself from Monotide's veiled threats just a second ago, "Just woke up from m-my nap...I uh had a run in with Monotide just now…"

"Ah I see," he responded, his brown boots rooted in place as he trained his gaze on me, "Although, you seem to be a bit down in the dumps and your palms are super sweaty, do you wanna talk about it? The others won't miss me for a while."

Why does everyone feel the need to counsel me so much lately? I mean I barely knew anyone here, so why is everyone pretending to be so cushy and carefree with me as if we were longtime best friends? Is this some weird side effect from dealing with the hailstorm of bullets from earlier? Am I hallucinating all of this or is this some fever dream?

"I'm n-not sure….." I whimpered out, feeling even more anxious, "You s-seem a bit tied up at the moment."

"Nah it's fine," he smiled happily, "Come with me to my room, it might help ease your nerves if we're talking one on one in private."

I nodded in response, too afraid to decline his offer as the communicator and I both walked to his room. The clomping of his brown boots against the tiled floor reverberated against the echoey silence of the hallway, not a soul in sight aside from the two of us.

"Here we go, after you," he said, swiping his Monopad over his door sensor.

"T-Thanks…."

I walked into his comfortably quaint room and rested myself on one of the speech bubble designed chairs, facing the seaside view of the ocean. These past few days felt as though I was in therapy, being shuffled around by different people all at once.

"What's been on your mind, man?" he asked, resting the bags against the chair opposite to mine as he sat down, arms resting on his lap and his feet facing forward, "Did Monotide say anything to you? Did he insult you in any way? Did he make you nervous?"

"I'm uh….t-think he t-threatened me? I'm not really s-sure," the doubt in my voice made that statement unbelievable to even the most honest person, "All these rules are just….so complicated, do we r-really have to do a-all of this?"

"I don't think it's something to be worried about, it's just a load of nonsense," he chuckled, rubbing his hands on his lap, "I think you're just feeling anxious is all, it's quite understandable given our situation, particularly in your case."

"B-But how do you s-stay so uh…..peaceful or uh calm as I should say," it was kind of freaky how well he was taking this to be honest, much like with Wayne, "What's your s-secret?"

"Hahaha, there's no secret to it really," he explained, using a lot of hand gestures as he said it, "I just had a lot of practice dealing with my own negative feelings growing up. It's not just about strength or willpower, it's all about taking everything one step at a time, even in your darkest moments."

"I s-see…"

"Maybe something to distract yourself might help alleviate any residual nervousness or tension you might be feeling?" he suggested, "Could be a good ice breaker. I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I'm a very good listener, toot toot!"

He says it like it's the easiest thing in the world to do. The way he talks just has this effect on me, it's hypnotizing if anything. I just want to tell him more about what was plaguing my mind.

Would that make me emotionally vulnerable down the line? Or do I really trust him enough to vent on these issues, that might seem insignificant to some? It was all very frustrating/

* * *

 **Should I confide in Terrence?**

 **[Do it, we're already here, might as well]** / Nope, keep it hidden for now

* * *

"Um...actually."

"Yes? Something on your mind?"

What am I even doing? This is going to blow up in my face later down the road, but what's the harm in speaking my mind now. He's not a threat to me, but maybe that's his strategy? It's too early to deliberate, so I should play along for now.

 **Kazumi** : How do you uh...s-stay as positive as you are r-r-right now, T-Terrence?

 **Terrence** : You mean like….how I'm able to handle this situation in such a calm demeanor? Or are you asking about how strangely relaxed I appear to be right now?

 **Kazumi** : Oh s-sorry...I hope that's not an invasive question. My apologies.

 **Terrence** : Nah, you're a good dude, I get asked that a lot from the people I worked with. I've met a lot of people who've suffered with depression and anxiety before, so you can ask me anything and vent as much as you want without judgement.

 **Kazumi** : W-Wow…..so uh...h-how do you do it?

 **Terrence** : Well like I said, I prefer to distract myself with stuff that I love doing, mainly hobbies, instead of fretting over the bad aspects of life. Simple leisurely things such as reading books, listening to music or even writing down my thoughts in my own personal journal.

 **Kazumi** : D-Does that help y-you?

 **Terrence** : It's not an almighty cure or anything, but it does help to assuage any personal feelings we can't express to others in person. For example, video games are also a hobby of mine. I find that despite it's infamous reputation, it's oddly soothing to one's mental health.

 **Kazumi** : W-Why v-video games?

 **Terrence** : Well, statistics and documented research have all proven that activities such as those have some small positive effects on one's mental capabilities. We as humans struggle with the simplicities of mundane life so much so that we desire escapism in the things we enjoy. Whether that be drawing or painting a beautiful landscape, cleaning up your room and organizing your thoughts and even playing video games can help destress oneself in bad times.

 **Kazumi** : Neat….so uh...what do you t-think is a good m-method to deal with my a-anxiety?

 **Terrence** : Have you ever played charades before? Or organized some kind of group project with a bunch of friends? How about a small get together?

 **Kazumi** : I uh...w-wouldn't know.

 **Terrence** : Oh...oops my bad, Kaz. I know your situation isn't stellar given you have amnesia. That was in poor taste, sorry.

 **Kazumi** : I-It's fine...you didn't mean any harm by it. I do feel slightly better, all these b-bottled up emotions were so overwhelming...it's n-nice to let them out.

 **Terrence** : You see! Even simple conversations and chatting with family or friends can help, that's one of the best treatments you can get that doesn't cost you a penny. Unless you have that one friend who always asks you to pay for things for them, then that's another story completely.

 **Kazumi** : Heh….I'd love to hear more about your other stories s-sometime…

 **Terrence** : And I'd be very happy to regale you with them as well, I'm glad you could talk with me about this. I hope it helped.

 **Kazumi** : S-Sure...

* * *

 **Terrence Hill's Profile Card: 1/5**

 **Note** : He's very easy to talk to, he even gave me good advice on how to cope with my own confused emotions. I might try one of his suggested hobbies another time.

* * *

"Ahem! Attention all students!" the tv monitor in the communicator's room blared loudly, the two of us turning our heads to see Inuyari on screen.

"Headmaster Monotide would like for all of you to come to the dining room for a brief motive update!" the purple dog's tail wagged as she announced this, "You don't want to annoy Monnie now, do you?"

The video disappeared as I looked at Terrence, both bewildered as well as scared of what the bear had in store. It was like a bad sense of ironic timing that as soon as I gained some level of cool headed thinking, that happened.

"Hey Kaz," Terrence looked at me with his soft bit concerned brown eyes, rolling his sleeves up to his elbows, "After this whole mess blows over, would you like to practice one of those tricks I told you?"

"Mhm…" I nodded reassuringly, blushing pale red as I stood up from my chair and adjusted my backpack's straps as the communicator and I headed out of his room.

He closed the door behind us as we both walked towards the dining room, soon to find out what Monotide had in store for us next. Just moments ago he'd vaguely demanded my obedience as if I were his hand servant, then he was acting as if nothing was wrong and went back to his usually jovial persona.

It was an enigma to me how that bear could be taken as seriously as he tried to be, while also still managing to evoke such a raw and visceral sense of fear within me that made my skin crawl.

"I bet whatever that silly bear has in store for us," Terrence continued, holding the plastic bags he was carrying with him in hands, "It can't be much worse, probably just more hot air."

"Y-You think so?" I fiddled with my teddy bear's paws as I listened on.

"Yeah, I mean his supposed motive is nothing to lose sleep over," he smirked confidently,"Who's really going to kill over a silly gimmick like their wish being granted?"

That was true. For a supposed killing game, trying to grant someone's wish wasn't something to really tear each other's throats open for. If anything, it wasn't really a looming threat or something that immediately garnered attention, so I suppose this gathering is Monotide's attempt to expedite the process.

"Guys hey!" a high pitched voice came from behind, belonging to the energetic knitter, "Wait for me!"

"Yo Wayne," Terrence smiled cheerfully, watching the young boy saunter up to us while tripping over his leftover knitting yarn, "What's up?"

"I…." he breathed heavily from running to catch up with us, "Finished…"

"Finished w-what?" I asked, cocking my head in confusion, taking note that he just started working on the scarf he was making for me, "T-That was fast."

"Your scarf T!" Wayne presented out a hand knitted yellow and cream brown scarf, "Sorry it took so long!"

"Woah sweet!" the communicator received it, holding it up as he rested it around his shoulders, "Thanks Wayne, it feels soft like a blanket and cozy too, I might even try sleeping with this on, heh!"

"Glad you like it!" the knitter brightly smiled, a smile so wide it could cure cancer, "Yours is going to be a while Kaz!"

"O-Oh...okay," totally not jealous, not at all, "Can't wait to see it…"

The three of us then resumed walking to the dining room, enjoying the others presence as I felt less lonely and less terrified. Is this what it's like to have friends? Did I even have friends in my previous life? Did this Kazumi person I claimed to be, have the same troubles and mental insecurities?

Without much thought on those lingering questions, we arrived at the dining room, reluctant to witness the latest development in the plot. It seemed to us that we were the last three to arrive, with the others, including Monotide and Inuyari, all waiting patiently. Everyone was huddled around each other and all facing the stage until some of them noticed our presence.

"Ah excellent, you three boy scouts have finally arrived!" the bear giggled ecstatically, "Now we can finally begin!"

"Can we just get to it already, Monotide" Sato sighed tiredly, "You're wasting everyone's time with whatever nonsense we're all here for."

"Yeah, I have about ten more dresses and suits to sew and put together," Lev irritatingly tapped his foot, crossing his arms, "Make it snappy you build a bear wannabe"

The look of pure malice in Monotide's expression made it clear he didn't want anymore trouble, his eyes glowed red as the fashion designer rolled his eyes, keeping quiet after the death glare he received.

"As you all know, I've realized that this upcoming motive lacks what you kids say the "oomph" it deserves," he walked around stage like a drill sergeant giving morning announcements, "So I've decided to add one more element to spice things up a little."

"Have you come to set a foul demon loose in these watery halls to consume our souls?" Moriko morbidly asked, her hand covering her face as she said, "Whatever you unleash, do your worst ursine!"

"Dude chill," Kimiya snorted, seemingly in a less foul mood than before as he puffed up his shearling coat, "That bear is full of shit anyways, he's all bark but no bite. I'm not scared of you."

"Oh my, that's not what I saw earlier," Akio chuckled, leaned up against the wall as he stuffed his hands in his pockets, "I'm pretty sure I heard a shrill girlish scream coming from your direction not too long ago after simply stubbing your toe. Ring any bells?"

"Yo, you wanna fucking go pretty boy?" the ice sculptor cracked his knuckles together, "I'll take your fucking deck of cards and shove them up-"

"While those boys settle their dick measuring contest," Vivienne mused, shaking her head at the noise in the room, "What is this new addition you have planned?"

"Well you see dear," Inuyari was the next to speak up, "Monnie over here wants to further put you kids into despair. The way he's going to do that is through the special videos already downloaded into your Monopads by moi!"

"Hey that was my line bitch," Monotide angrily gritted his teeth, "Always stealing the good ones…"

"Aww don't be like that hubby," her dog tongue stuck out as slobber drooled down her lips, "You know you're proud of me! Gimme a kiss!" the dog lunged at the bear and peppered him with doggy pecks on the face.

"What the hell is even happening?" Aphrodite furrowed her penciled in dark brows, "Did we really just stop what we were doing just to see those two make out? How tacky."

"It's a tad distasteful if you ask me," Iena looked uncomfortable with the display, "What a rather bipolar relationship."

"If you can even call it a healthy one," even Torakusu seemed bothered by it.

"Eww enough of that shit!" Monotide was able to push her off of him, "As she said, please turn your attention towards your Monopads, that's something you simple minded kids can do, can't you?"

As instructed, we turned to our pads and saw a new notification and what appeared to be a video app with a Monotide character at the back of a camera symbol. A bright red circle with a white number one hovered over the app as I pressed it, shakily tapping it as the screen faded to black.

In a flash there was a white play button appearing in the center, I tapped it and watched as the video began playing. In the video, a chibi version of Monotide bopped around the screen as a few indistinct figures were seen hidden in the silhouetted background.

"I can see into your mind and eloquently say, the deepest part of your subconsciousness you so wish to keep away," the oddly cute mascot mysteriously spoke, the voice tingling in my ear as I shivered in place, "I will show you a future so true, save for only you."

After the bear spoke, the figures became crystal clear as a bright light shone on the screen. The figures' faces were blurred out with dark shadows, but I could see two people in question, a man and a woman. They appeared to be a couple, from the way they both held each other's hands and that the woman wore a fancy diamond engagement ring on her left ring finger.

They both looked happy judging from the distorted eerie laughs as they sat on a beachside shore admiring the sunset ahead of them. Suddenly from out of the distance, appeared to be a young child, a boy running up to them.

"Is that me!?" I thought to myself, processing the cryptic video's message.

The young boy had the same dark messy hair atop his head, the droopy hazel eyes and facial features as I did, but he looked very different. He had a healthier tanned fair skin, his face lit up with bright curiosity and he dashed towards the man and woman enthusiastically as if he knew them already.

Before the young boy could reach the seemingly young couple, the Monotide chibi popped up in front of the screen, snickering evilly as it spoke these last few words.

"This could be you, if you so wish. A slew of memories might be the thing that you so dearly miss. Act now and this could be you. For once it is gone, it's nothing but a faint memory you once knew."

The video ended on that solemn yet complex passage, not only adding more to the mystery of why I was here, but also adding even more frustrating thoughts to my war torn mind. Who was that couple in the video? Are they my real parents or whoever Kazumi's parents were?

"Are you trying to goad us into killing someone?" Iena questioned the bear, suspicious of the video, keeping a poised countenance as her lips quivered, "Is this some kind of joke to you?"

"Oh no no no, nothing quite like that," Monotide hummed, lying through his teeth, "Consider it a little gift on my part, a piece of a fragmented desire you all wish to desperately pursue. I just added little video edits to make it even more…...enticing."

"It was like watching a scary home movie," Lou puffed her cheeks out, looking a bit wary and unsure, "So we can even wish for whatever is in our videos?"

"Yep yep, on top of getting out of this place alive," the bear continued to exposit, "You also get one wish, one only, granted by yours truly, no strings attached."

"That's awfully quite generous of you," Asta plainly said, not seeing the hidden intent behind it.

"I don't know, I don't trust this bear as far as I can throw 'em," Dragomir scoffed, seeming a bit perturbed by the video as he started to tense his muscles after watching it, "This is nothing but pure witchcraft!"

"This be no mere witchery, laddie" Takara's eyes widened, sounding a bit intrigued, "This be some kind of heavenly miracle almost, a siren's song if you will."

The others continued to whisper amongst each other about this new incentive, the lingering worry in the air continued to fester as the others either gossiped about what they saw or presented their findings to their closest allies like a paranoid game of telephone.

"Excuse me, Monotide," Asta raised her hand, like a student asking a question, "I don't quite understand what you wanted us here for, you could have very well sent the message to us while we were busy preparing for the event."

"You don't need to understand, I just wanted to see the dumb looks on all of your faces is all," he smiled mischievously, "Did you like the show, so sorry that I forgot to make the popcorn. Whoopsie."

"This is bullshit…" Ushio scoffed at the video, looking forlorn but upset, "I don't believe anything in this video is real…"

"But I saw my parents in it!" Wayne announced aloud, he must have had a video similar to mine, "I think it might be something important. I'm not sure what it means, but it's definitely suspicious."

"Wayne, now's not the time," Sato shushed the knitter, "What's this side show for anyway? You want us to kill someone right? So why bother with all the theatrics and subliminal messages?"

"I'm sorry but you kids must be blind, deaf and dumb," the bear stuck his tongue out, unamused by our naivete, "I can't stand this forced sense of unity you all share, it makes me want to vomit my guts out like Kazumi did earlier, hehe."

"I understand your intention, albeit I think it's a lackluster one at that," Sakai looked at his screen, unimpressed with what he saw, "This is a boring way to inspire anyone that has more than five brain cells to kill, not even towards a fly."

"Regardless," Yoshikazu cleared his throat, trying to maintain control over the situation, "I doubt that whatever it is you have planned, will not come to pass."

"It's a little far fetched in my opinion," Stella responded, rubbing her tired eyes, "As much as it looks appealing, I don't buy it either, it's too good to be true."

"Fine, believe what you want to believe," Monotide sneered at us, "But I am a bear of my word, and I always keep my end of the deal. Do you think you can too?"

"Yeah, you kids better become believers soon!" Inuyari chimed in, her tail wagging happily as she attempted her own evil cackle, "Be careful what you wish for."

"Took the words right out of my mouth," Monotide approached the dog and smooched her on the cheek, to which she barked out happily in response.

"That's just gross," Nomi echoed most of our thoughts witnessing this random display of affection.

"Now I'll be off, don't go murdering each so soon now, ta ta~" the bear smiled sinisterly, disappearing soon after and Inuyari soon followed, giddily moaning as she vanished too.

What am I supposed to make of this news? Is this another push to drive us to kill, some lost memory or seething desire? Is this what my subconscious wants, is this actually what I really want? I couldn't make heads or tails of it, even if the answer was right in front of me.

"Everyone, gather around please," Yoshikazu gained our attention once the two animatronics left, some of us forming a unified circle, "We need to be careful now. Those two aren't messing around from the looks of it."

"Oh? What gave it away, gramps," Sakai rolled his eyes at the auctioneer, "I bet it was the malicious glow in his eyes or maybe it was the fact that he gave us a double motive so to speak. Oh I wonder what it could be?"

"Now's not the time for snarky comments, Sakai," he scolded the hair stylist, who seemed more amused if anything, "This is serious, does anyone have a plan? Some kind of idea at all?"

"I wouldn't mind offering myself as a sacrifice," Torakusu confidently smiled, putting his fingers under his chin to appear smart, "I'd hate for any of you lovely ladies to get caught in the crossfires," he winked at the girls, surprising no one, they all looked unamused by this.

"If you could stop thinking with your head in your pants, then that would be very much appreciated," Vivienne cut to the chase, "I say we go ahead with this formal dinner. It helps even the odds."

"How so?" Terrence asked, pushing back the scarf around his neck, "I mean that bear has freaking turrets hidden in the walls of this place. Who knows what else he's hiding from us."

"I think she's trying to say that if we're all in one room together," Yumeji sleepily added, "That weakens the opportunities for a future murderer and reduces the possibility of a crime taking place."

"Ah I see!" Stella agreed wholeheartedly, "So we can all keep an eye on each other as to account for each other's presence, is that what you mean?"

"Precisely," Yoshikazu smiled, "Speaking of the dinner, how are the meal preparations coming along?"

"Well, Stella and I taste tested and cooked all of the food," Iena interjected, brushing back strands of her light blue hair, "There seems to be nothing poisonous or harmful in the ingredients, so all the food is accounted for, just need to set them on the tables."

"Excellent job you two," the auctioneer nodded, "Lev, you said you were almost done with the outfits, if I remember correctly?"

"Indeed, it's been quite tiresome, but it was no trouble for me," he arrogantly smirked, "Aphrodite has been such a dear, helping me design and tailor each one to match you guys' tastes."

"You know it Levvie," the pageant queen giggled playfully, "By the way, are you sure you can handle the rest? I mean my outfit is fabulous, but I'm sure you can handle the rest."

"Of course," he said as sweat dripped from his forehead and he looked rather shaken up from the motive, "Although it's hard to really focus now, given what just happened."

"Well at least you did your part," Vivienne coldly smiled, "Speaking of, did you guys on the decoration committee finish your tasks like planned?"

"Yes we did!" Lou ecstatically responded, "Although Waynie did get sidetracked a lot with his knitting and Mori kept arguing with me over the aesthetic appeal between cuteness and whatever gothic inspiration she had. We managed to come to a compromise though, so it's all good."

"I have strategically placed my minions around this area," the doll maker pointed out the random voodoo like dolls hung up on strings in certain corners of the room, "That should be enough to temper the demons lurking in this place for the future event."

"How….forthcoming of you," Tora noted, slightly creeped out by the decor, "Although if that fails I will help protect everyone in case something bad happens! You can count on me."

"Why do you sound so pleased with yourself?" Aphrodite groaned, as he cheesily winked at everyone, "Ugh, men.."

"Anyway, the heavy lifting and set up of tables is all done," Sato replied, as I looked around to see tables covered in fancy aquarium patterned tablecloths with silverware and cutlery laid out neatly, "It was strenuous, but we got the job done."

"I helped set up the chandelier up above us," Dragomir cockily announced, as I looked up and noticed the glass diamond chandelier cascading light around the room, "It was nothing really just needed to attach the rope to a sturdy metal rung," he then pointed to one high above the entrance, "Although I would have appreciated a bit more help from a certain someone."

"Hey man, I was busy making my ice sculpture for the party," Kimiya protested, grumpily annoyed as everyone looked at him, "You wanna do it, be my fucking guest."

"Petty squabbles aside, thank you boys for your help," Stella acknowledged their efforts with a simple nod, "Terrence, did you help Yumeji remake the drinks?"

"Mhm, although she just added the sugar and sweeteners," the communicator responded, noting the oneirologist's laziness, "I pretty much had to remake the entire drink myself."

"I was just conserving my energy is all…" the oneirologist responded, yawning loudly for the rest of us in the back to overhear, "Plus he was already doing a good as is, so I let him continue."

"Heh and here we thought you were totally reliable," Akio chuckled in amusement, his lollipop resting in the corner of his mouth, "I'd rather die from dehydration than drink whatever you, the nut job pirate or that wimpy baby has to offer."

"Not like you have any room to speak…" Yume retorted, smugly yawning at the gambler, "At least I volunteered…"

"I'm not going to play nice with any of you just because my life is on the line," he glared at the oneirologist only to wave her off, "Although I do find the idea of this new motive rather…..perplexing."

"What do you mean by that, Akio?" the lifeguard asked, skeptically training his gaze on him, "You might as well tell us, if you're so smart."

"What I mean is, he's playing off of everyone's weaknesses and insecurities, or so that's the plan," the gambler removed the lollipop from his mouth to lick it, "I've seen this kind of tactic before in the parlor rooms I've played in, a bunch of nasty cheaters if you ask me."

"So he's trying to catch us in some sort of trap?" Asta wondered, her placid countenance didn't really show much fear on her android's face.

"How long did it take you to realize that," he smirked, "All I will say is, if you believe me or not, this party is going to flop and that's what the bear wants in the end."

"And what makes you so sure about that?" Nomi asked, seemingly irked by everything that had just transpired, "I mean….you have a point...but I don't know what to think."

"He's just a skeptical party pooper is all," Lou pouted, her childish smile turned into a frown, "He's just mad that he won't get to join in on the fun, which doesn't surprise anyone since he's such a sore loser."

Akio didn't respond to the roleplayer's taunts, only frowned as he clicked his tongue at her candid remarks. As I listened to everyone talking, it felt good to feel a bit safe, even with the extra motive in place. Despite the discussion in front of me, I felt slightly reassured that we at least had some idea of what that bear was concocting.

"I'm s-sorry if I wasn't much help…" I spoke out amidst all the others talking.

"Kazumi, listen," Sato patted me on the back, "We know things aren't the best right now and that you're in quite a vulnerable situation with your condition at the moment, just don't sweat it."

"Y-You think so?" I looked him straight in the face.

"Of course," Yoshikazu gave a thumbs up, acknowledging the lifeguard, "Everyone else has pretty much done their jobs, but you helped us in a big way also."

"H-How exactly?" I asked, confused by what he meant.

"You fucking idiot. You saved us from drinking that poisoned punch the crazy pirate made earlier," Kimiya clicked his tongue, "In fact, why the fuck did someone put her in charge of that to begin with?"

"Kimiya we're short on hands as is," Iena looked at him with a disappointed face, "We need all the help we can get and I didn't see you pitching in to help other than whining and complaining the entire time."

"Fuck off," the ice sculptor rolled his eyes at the judge, "I don't need another lecture right now."

"As much as I love watching this little lover's quarrel," Sakai sarcastically remarked, "I'll still be holding haircuts for anyone still interested that is. Also if you're feeling fancy, I recommend getting a mani-pedi too while you guys are at it."

"I totally love what he did with my nails~" the pageant queen squealed in excitement presenting her manicured nails, now painted a bubblegum pink with rhinestones on each cuticle, "Ten out of ten would recommend."

"In that case matey, why dontcha squeeze me in for an appointment," Takara laughed heartily, "There be barnacles and grey tips on me cuticles and dark rings around me fingers"

"Ugh don't get me started on that, you're beyond help if you ask me," the hair stylist snickered smugly, "Although I do love a good challenge, so I'll meet you in my room in a few minutes."

"Yar har!" the sailor smiled, "I tip me hat to you lassie!"

"Alright then, if nobody has any complaints, I think we're done for the day," the auctioneer said, finalizing the meeting, "If you have any last minute suggestions feel free to take it up with myself or Vivienne."

"Just remember to keep on your guard everyone," the trader added, brushing back her long raven hair, "Can't be too careful now. We might be on edge, but let's try to keep some semblance of decency alright."

"Alright everyone, let's clean up the area first before-" Sato announced before getting cut off by the belll.

 **DING DONG DING DONG**

"Ahem," Monotide appeared on the screen once again, "It is now 8PM, night night my little guppies, I will see you all bright and early tomorrow morning, don't let the bedbugs bite~"

"Okay then," the lifeguard sighed, shrugging his shoulders, "I guess we can leave the rest here and clean up tomorrow morning."

"Sounds like a plan!" Wayne beamed hyperly, "Ooh let's have a sleepover tonight Lou! It'll be so much fun!"

"Sure I'd love too!" the roleplayer immediately responded, "Let's use my room!"

"Normally I'd advise against boys and girls sleeping in the same room together," Iena mulled it over briefly, "However you two can have your way this time," she winked at them.

"Yay!" the two both screamed in unison, "Come join us Kazzie! You too Yume!"

"Oh uh…" I then remembered my earlier chat with Terrence about distractions, "Sure…"

"I don't see the harm in it…" the oneirologist sleepily smiled, "Sounds fun."

"Great! With that said, good night everyone," Yoshikazu said, leaving the group as he walked around the room observing the decorations, "We have a big day tomorrow, so get some rest."

The knitter and the roleplayer both skipped on ahead with each other as Yume and I trailed behind them like third wheels in a group hangout. The others went their separate ways as the two of us both walked towards the dorm room hallway, brushing past the double doors.

"How have you been feeling Kaz?" Yumeji asked, adjusting her glasses on her face, "I'm sorry for...slacking off earlier."

"No, it's c-completly fine…" I half lied, her help might have prevented the earlier mishap, "Y-You were t-tired, so it's no b-big deal."

"I was uh...studying your symptoms last night and must have..." she paused to yawn loudly, "Stayed up too long….sorry."

"I g-get it," her apology was sincere, but I felt like she was telling me half of the truth.

The two of us continued to walk in awkward silence towards the dorms, not saying much of anything until we arrived to see Lou and Wayne impatiently waiting for us.

"You two are so slow, like snails in peanut butter," Lou sniggered playfully, "I hope you two don't mind we use my room."

"I've already grabbed some blankets and pillows," Wayne loudly announced, holding what appeared to be a large sleeping bag full of stuff, "I can't wait!"

"Sounds exciting…" Yumeji added, a lazy smile plastered her face, "Right Kaz?"

"Huh.. oh uh yeah!" I dozed off, a bit groggy from my lethargic movements.

The four of us headed inside the roleplayer's room, greeted by the same stage in the back and I noticed all of her large plushies placed on the floor with a bunch of throw pillows scattered around shaped into a small circle around a toy playset.

"What should we play?" Lou removed the panda hoodie from her head, "Hmm... how about we play with the dolls and re-enact a scene from a movie I once saw!"

"Hm, I don't know," Wayne responded, "Maybe we should have a tea party instead!"

The two youths both scampered around, like pre-schoolers during recess as I sat down on a blue plushie chair and Yumeji lazily plopped down on a bright red and blue spotted giraffe. It seemed to hug her in place as it's soft arms wrapped around her.

"I t-think we need pajamas….I think," I suggested, unsure if that's what we should do, "I've n-never been to a s-sleepover before…"

"Oh you're right," Wayne gasped, just realizing it too, "Darn it, I don't think we have any."

"Don't worry about that," Lou chimed in, "Someone left us a cool present on my table, they must have known we would do this in advance or something."

"H-How?" I asked, genuinely confused as to who had the foresight to do that, "Are t-they psychic?"

"Maybe it was Monotide's doing?" the oneirologist shrugged, "Honestly wouldn't surprise me, since he basically treats us like we're a bunch of spoiled children any way."

I pondered over that phrase, bewildered by why an evil children's mascot would do all of this to begin with. One minute he's nice and hospitable and the next he's a crazy lunatic who was willing to blow our heads off earlier, it made no sense. That's when I got to thinking, are we really being held hostage for ransom or is there something darker to this game?

"Ooh it's new pajamas!" Lou jumped for joy, "Come on guys, let's put them on!"

I rose from my seat, heading over to her desk and noticed four different articles of pajamas inside. Lou pulled out a black and white panda onesie, Wayne got a black and white striped pajama shirt along with black and white plaid pants, making him look like a childish prisoner.

Yumeji ruffled inside the box and pulled out bunny patterned pink pajamas, which seemed like it was made for Aphrodite and not her. Instead of revulsing, she accepted the pajamas and went to go and change behind the curtain.

"Lucky…" Wayne gasped, as I remember he said the color pink and bunnies were his favorite things, "Oh well."

"Look, we're twinsies!" Lou laughed, noticing her and Wayne's similar color schemes.

"I didn't know we'd match so well, that's amazing!" the knitter seemed surprised, but happy nonetheless, "Your turn Kazumi."

I then peered inside the box and saw what looked to be dark purple, almost silk, pajamas with blue crescent moons, yellow shooting stars patterned all over the design along with cow faced shaped buttons on the shirt.

"Oh my…" I rested my teddy bear on the table, picking up the pajamas, "This s-seems pretty….childish."

"I think it suits you," Yumeji gave a half hearted chuckle, "Oddly specific at that."

Unsure of what to do, I walked up on Lou's stage, hid behind the curtains and began disrobing, putting on the pajamas and feeling the soft material brush against my pale skin. It was like walking in a giant blanket, one made by a malicious bear who somehow knew the exact measurements of my clothes. It was concerning but I didn't challenge the idea.

I grabbed my regular clothes, stuffed them inside my backpack as I stepped off the stage. The four of us all gathered around in the circle, sharing smiles as we began chatting for a short while about minor things.

"This is like a pre-party slumber party!" Wayne thought aloud, "It's a shame we didn't bring any food, I'm craving a midnight snack."

"Y-Yeah…." I mumbled out, feeling even more awkward than before.

"Maybe we should try playing with these Darbie dolls!" Lou suggested, grabbing four dolls from the side, taking the princess dressed doll for herself, "I'll be pretty princess Darbie!"

"I'll be the bad guy!" the knitter mischievously smirked, grabbing a male doll that wore a black business suit and was shrouded in mystery, "Hey, he kinda looks like Akio."

"Heh, I can definitely see that," Yumeji chuckled, grabbing a Darbie doll dressed in a fancy red pantsuit with sharp glasses and a fierce look in her eyes, "I guess I'll be the spy like negotiator."

"Come on Kazzie, choose one!" the roleplayer egged me on, "Ooh how about this one?"

She presented an action figure dressed in a skintight pure white suit, with a yellow cape and white and black S on his muscular chest, "You can be Sparkleman, here to save the day!"

"O-Oh...alright," I received the figure, noticing the intricate details in it's muscles and his suit sigil, it was quite impressive for an action figure, "I-I guess I'll start."

The four of us positioned our figures accordingly, Lou propping her princess atop a makeshift toy building bound and hanging from a toy rope, Wayne's doll brandished a toy knife and held it out menacingly over the taut rope, Yumeji's figure was positioned far from the bottom of the building and hacking into what appeared to be a virtual simulator, while I positioned my superhero atop the building opposite the well dressed bad guy.

"Hahaha!" the knitter laughed evilly, moving his figure a few inches, "You'll never save Darbie in time, Sparkleman! One slice and she's done for!"

"U-Uh….Y-You'll never get away with this!" I mustered up a somewhat brave response, even if I was internally cringing at how lame I sounded, "You c-coward!"

"Help me!" Lou shrieked in a high pitched voice, wiggling her character stuck in the rope, "Also, you could have knotted this rope less tightly, it's hurting my arms."

"Shut up you," Wayne sneered at her remark, "What are you going to do now, Sparkles!"

Briefly thinking over my response, Yumeji nudged my shoulder, as her doll was typing away at its virtual AR computer headset around her ear.

"Sparkleman, our team has deployed a sniper in a separate building as a failsafe," the oneirologist detailed, "We have a landing pad at the bottom, below the princess just in case."

"T-Thank you...uh…" I stumbled over my lines, redirecting my attention to the bad guy, "I will uh...melt you down with my laser vision!"

"Hah, you're too good and morally righteous to kill me," the bad guy laughed, "You get me the money and a car, let me walk away and I will let her go."

"You f-f-fiend!" I yelped out, motioning to grip the hero's fists, "Darbie, Is the money wired to his account?"

"Yes, although I think you know what to do here, Sparkleman," Yumeji smiled smugly, removing her doll's glasses in a swift motion.

Did I really? With not much time to think, Wayne's character cut the rope holding the princess in place and she began to fall slowly with Lou imitating the fall to her potential death.

"Noooooooo!" the roleplayer echoed out as her character slowly fell, "Ooh a bouncy pad, neat!"

Wayne's bad guy lunged at my hero with a knife, and with slightly shaky movements, my character dodged using his super hero speed, swiftly turning the tables on the bad guy as my hero's fist punched him in the back of his neck, taking him by surprise as Wayne dropped the figure on the roof of the toy building.

In that heated moment, I made Sparkleman fly around to the edge of the building, swooping in to save the princess before she fell.

"My hero!" Lou giggled happily, her princess Darbie smooching the hero character's cheek, "Call me later~"

"O-Oh uh...sure miss Darbie," I blushed from her suggestive comment to my character, "All in a d-day's work!"

"Curses! Foiled again!" Wayne grumbled, as Yumeji arrived with a tow of police officers coming to arrest the scoundrel, "I'll be back, just you wait Sparkleman!"

"Tell it to the judge," Yumeji smirked, giving the hero a thumbs up, "Good work partner."

"And with the bad guy handcuffed and off to jail," Lou narrated epicly, "The hero carries the princess down to the ground as the crowd goes wild!" to which Wayne emulated the crowd's cheering, "And scene!"

"That was so much fun!" Wayne jumped for joy, tossing his character off to the side, almost manically, as he clapped for the good performance, "Good job everyone, especially you Kaz, are you secretly the Ultimate Actor or something?"

"I uh...d-don't think so," I scratched my cheek, feeling embarrassed by the sudden praise, "I wasn't t-that brave."

"Nonsense," Lou shook her head, "I thought you were stunning, and you too Yumeji, it's a top notch performance, almost as if you knew how to play the part!"

"It was nothing," she smiled confidently, "Just doing my job….*yawn*...I'm sleepy, I'm going to bed now."

"I think I will too," Wayne rubbed his tired eyes, seeming to have used up his energy reserves for the day, "Night night everyone!" he then immediately fell asleep atop his bean bag and went out like a light.

"Same to you Waynie," Lou yawned while stretching, "Good night you two," the roleplayer stood up and hopped into her bed, wrapped snugly in her pink blanket and panda onesie.

"You were so c-cool Yume," I sat comfortable in my spot, hugging a dark blue pillow.

"You think so?" she tilted her head, musing over it once more, "I didn't particularly do much, but I appreciate the compliment, thanks."

"N-No problem…" I whispered as my eyes felt heavy and my body slumped to the floor, "Good night…"

"You too," she did the same, removing her glasses and putting them off to the side and undoing her messy bun, letting her long brown hair loose.

That was a lot more entertaining and humorous than I imagined it to be. Is this what it's like to have fun and to enjoy each other's company? I almost forgot that the motive was still hovering over my conscience like a bad dream, but that type of distraction was what I needed.

It was nice to be a part of something, even if I didn't know who I was at the end of the day.

It felt nice to have friends…...

* * *

 **A/N** : Hey there everyone, hope you all are doing well, and wow another chapter out so soon, I'm on a roll lately. That being said I hope you all enjoyed that chapter and I hope it was a nice distraction away from your online classes or whatever essential job you work in.

What did you guys think? Did you notice any foreshadowing in this chapter, it was a fun one to write and I can't wait to show you guys what I have in store for the next one. I promise the murder is going to happen, just give me some time, online classes are a killer right now lol.

I hope you all are well and good luck to everyone out there, stay safe and healthy and I hope this chapter makes you somewhat happy. Don't forget to vote in the poll on who you think will die in the next chapter, because murder will be happening. Also leave your thoughts on who you think will die and what you liked the most.

With that said, I hope you all have a wonderful day, night, holiday or whatever it is you are celebrating, keep on doing you and I will see you in the next update or whenever I decide to post next.

Happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alike, I will see you all next time, bye bye!


	9. Chapter 1: Shallow Surfaces

**For those still keeping up with this story, I hope you got a good dose of wholesome fluffiness. Alas, you knew what story you signed up for, hahahahaha! Enjoy UwU. Don't forget to vote in the poll as to who you think is the Chapter 1 Killer, when done.**

* * *

 _Friends. What an utterly funny concept that is. What does it mean to be a friend? How does one go about describing what it means to have friends or define what a friend is in the first place?_

 _Human nature dictates that we seek companionship, intimacy and affection. Humans that have similar traits and qualities are meant to eventually collide and befriend each other. Humans with opposite traits can still be friends, but is that really something that can last the test of time?_

 _You can call yourself a true friend, but it's all just talk and no action. People will put up the nice facade of being a decent or even good natured person, but refuse to really show it to others. One bad remark could lead to temporary bitterness, one wrong move could leave major scars and one slip of the tongue could lead to someone getting offended over some minute drama._

 _So why do humans bother to begin with?_

 _Why do humans think that it's alright to betray their so-called friends when it's convenient for them? What's there to gain from ruining someone's chance at happiness, if it means temporary success in the long run? Why does society place a negative stigma on what can be considered a friend or just a plain old, manipulative asshole? Whoever said friends were truly loyal?_

 _We pick and choose who we select as our friends, but why do we feel so comfortable ignoring them just because of a few different personality or skill traits we despise about them? Why do we feel the need to challenge our friends if we're meant to stick together? Why do our friends try to prove us wrong, when we're all meant to act as one against the big bad world?_

 _Friends, my poor, sweet, stupid, little Kazumi…...are the biggest liars of them all._

…..

* * *

I slept for what seemed like eons, my body calm and rested for once, since waking up in this weird facility. I didn't suffer any bad dreams, nor did I have any lingering anxiety lurking in my mind. I felt cozy and comfortable, despite having slept on the floor the entire night in Lou's room.

As optimistic as I was, I wanted to savor the leftover remains of this overdue slumber, hoping to wish away all that's to come as one bad nightmare gone on for far too long. I slowly opened up my eyes, taking in the faint light coming from above the glass ceiling. The marine life swam aimlessly, trying to survive another day before their next eventual resting spot, away from any lurking predators.

Grogginess trampled my body as I shifted around the stuffed plushies, my small purple blanket ensnaring me into a human burrito, as I savored all the warmth left in my system. For the first time since waking up here, I felt truly at peace, but what a fleeting fantasy that would be.

 **DING DONG DING DONG**

The morning announcement bell rang, a cursed reminder that whatever tranquility there was, ceased to be as those chimes sent a malicious unnerving sensation rattling off in my mind. Soon we all were subject to listening to Monotide's voice, his snickering sneer plastered over the screen as he sipped his morning tropical drink, with Inuyari cozying up to him in his lap like a purring cat with each backstroke he gave to the submissive dog.

"Ahem, it is now 7 AM!" the bear chirped aloud through the microphone, "Goooood morning everyone! Let's make today another fun filled one, see you all soon!"

The monitor's screen shut off in a flash, the ephemeral happiness I had felt before waking up fled away as an uneasy chill spider walked up my spine as I sat up and stretched, giving a hearty yawn as I cried out. I rubbed my tired eyes to see Yumeji still sleeping, snoring silently with drool pouring from her open mouth as she seemed to be out cold.

Wayne rustled around in his sleep, his left leg sticking out diagonally and his other bent at a weird mathematical angle and his strawberry blonde hair messier than a ball of yarn, as he rested on a nearby stuffed cow plushie. Lou, on the other hand, seemed to have awoken from the sound of the morning announcement, blinking tiredly as she yawned, covering her mouth with her pajama sleeves.

Her pigtails disappeared in favor of a messy light brown disaster atop her head and she smacked her lips as she noticed I was also starting to wake up as well.

"Good morning Kazzie…" she sleepily responded, a faint smile forming on her face.

"M-Morning...Lou," I acknowledged in kind, "D-Did I wake you up? I'm sorry…"

"Nah, you're good," she dusted off her panda onesie, as she stood up, "I was just woken up by the announcement too. I'm gonna get ready...*yawn*...the party is today after all!"

"O-Oh it's today?" I was surprised by her statement, "So soon….b-but we just started decorating…"

"I don't see what's wrong with that, it means more fun for us," the roleplayer giggled, eager to get up as she headed over to a vanity nearby, "Ugh, my hair is such a mess right now, I really wish I had a better comb to brush it with, but beggars can't be choosers."

I mused over her words as I saw Wayne slowly getting up, the knitter's bright golden eyes illuminating the room as he saw the two of us already up. Despite his groggy state, he seemed more than ready to seize the day just from him smiling widely at the sight of us. His baggy eyes tired from restless sleep as he waved to us half heartedly, while rubbing his eyes.

"Morning you guys," he cheerfully expressed, a sleepy smile forming on his face, "That sleepover was so much fun! We should do it again sometime!" the knitter seemed a bit too eager at that for someone who just woke up.

"Hahaha, I can't wait for the next one~" the roleplayer teased, winking at the two of us, "I think we might need to take a shower first," she sniffed her armpits.

"Oh, you're right," he did the same as her, pinching his nose, "We were sweating all of yesterday, I hadn't noticed," the two of them laughed at each other's expense.

"T-That was...s-so much fun," I smiled weakly, blushing at what I said, "I l-loved it."

"Aww, anytime Kazzie," Lou smiled, fluffing up her mange of hair, "Maybe then you can probably help me with one of my future role plays. I'd love to test your acting repertoire! Might I add you were fantastic last night."

"T-Thanks...I'm quite looking forward t-to it," I awkwardly agreed, not sure how to cope with this sudden increase in endorphins, "S-Should we wake up Yume too?"

"I don't think she'd like that, hehe, Wayne chuckled quietly, "She really is Sleeping Beauty after all, although I did like her performance as the secret agent last night. She really nailed that role!"

"Same here," Lou nodded, almost jumping out of her seat with how happy she was, "I never pictured someone like her to get into a role that quickly, it was amazing. Usually it takes me awhile to prepare for a stage play, but she made it look flawless on her first attempt!"

The two of them continued talking, praising each other for the makeshift roleplay from last night as I stared above us, the lilting whispers of the ocean sang beautiful notes as I spotted a few starfish attached to the glass frame of the barrier. I wondered how much force it really took to burst through the only thing keeping us safe from the ocean's pressure? I wondered how much pressure this glass barrier could take?

I wondered how a place like this was even possible to build. Some say humans cannot make it to such low depths without submarines or protective gear, but a feat this impressive, would have taken months, if not years of work and planning to get just right. Whoever was holding us hostage probably had the time, money and resources to take up this monstrous project and get it done within such a short amount of time.

The question was, why was this facility built in the first place? What was its purpose?

Before I could finish my train of thought, a loud knocking on the door arrested me away just briefly. It seemed to have woken up the oneirologist as she snored loudly, whipping her head up as the drool spilled from the underside of her lips and on the floor.

"I'll get it!" the knitter hopped at the opportunity, "I wonder who it could be?"

"Huh? What time is it?" Yumeji looked around the room, back and forth as she searched for her glasses, "Where's the fire?!"

"It's uh….around 7AM," I estimated the time, since there didn't appear to be any clocks present in the room, almost startled by her rude awakening, "G-Good morning...did you s-sleep well?"

"Oh sorry…." she rubbed her eyes, shaking her sleeping leg awake, "I was in the middle of a good dream is all. It was just getting to the good part too…"

"I'll bet," I giggled, watching as she rifled around the floor, perching her glasses on her tired-looking face.

"Morning my darlings!" a male voice erupted through the room's gentle silence, belonging to Lev, "Pardon the surprise awakening, I just came to drop off your formal wardrobe for later this afternoon!"

The fashion designer's long frosty pinkish white hair was fastened into a messy bun and his eyes manically shaking around, probably hyper from caffeine judging from how frantic he looked, like a parent trying to wake their children up for school. He seemed to be in quite the hurry from the looks of him and judging from how jittery he appeared.

"Aww, you didn't have to do that, Levvie," Lou put her hand to her heart, "Dropping off our clothes so formally like that, personally I'm flattered, you make me feel like a movie star."

"Well, judging from how everyone dresses on a regular basis, you'll be thanking me later," he snarkily chuckled, "You ought to be lucky you're getting custom designed outfits from the likes of me. Any model worth their salt would pay top billing to even set foot in my studio, let alone beg me for my prized work!"

Lev proudly flaunted his resume around, like a peacock exposing it's majestic feathers to the other animals, clad in a fancy grey and pink pajama outfit with custom black slippers on his feet. I noticed under his mint green eyes, there were black bags, probably from a restless night of working on the party garments all by himself.

"L-Lev?" I asked, he turned his attention to me, "A-Are you...okay? D-Did you get any sleep?"

"Of course, w-why wouldn't I be?" he almost seemed offended by that remark, "A little late night's sleep and tons of iced coffees never killed anyone. You can never cut corners when it comes to high art and fashion!" He seemed way too proud of that statement.

"I've never worn such fancy clothes before!" Wayne eyed the four outfits wrapped in an opaque cream clothes paper on a metal hanger resting on Lou's wooden table, "This is going to be so much fun!"

"Uh uh uh, no touching until it's time for the formal!" Lev swatted the knitter's hand away, "I wouldn't expect someone wearing hand me downs to understand true, couture fashion, even if it hit him in the face."

"S-Sorry Lev…" the knitter apologized, like a wounded puppy who accidentally peed on the carpet, "I'll be careful with them…"

"You seem quite agitated…this morning," Yumeji noted, blinking indifferently at the fashion designer's callousness, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"A lovely offer, but I will have to rescind that invitation for now," he kept his head up high, despite how jittery he was, "I have to go deliver the other outfits, god knows everyone needs my help right about now."

With that, he bolted out of the roleplayer's room, seemingly annoyed and half awake as he slammed the door behind him. The resonating thud was the final chord that shocked us all awake. I knew he was under a lot of pressure, but was it warranted? He seemed perfectly confident and calm before, what made him so prickly today?

"Hmm, as rude as that was, he probably needs to cool off," Yumeji mentioned, rubbing the side of her cheek, "Give him some time, he'll be feeling better soon."

"Maybe he's just hangry?" Lou suggested coyly, giggling at the thought, "People do make a lot of stupid judgements when they're on an empty stomach, not to mention he looked ready to pass out from how much he was shaking."

"I wonder if we'll get breakfast like yesterday?" Wayne wondered, puckering his lips as he tugged at his pajama sleeves, "Hey Kaz, do you want to sit with me at breakfast?"

"H-Huh?" I turned to the knitter, not expecting his reaction, "S-Sure thing…."

I sat there on the floor, processing what just happened as a sense of urgency riled me up. We still didn't have any concrete ideas on how to find an exit, nor did we have any current plans to fight against Monotide and his sidekick Inuyari. All we could do really was go along with his plans and hopefully find some ways to thwart his first motive, even if it means degrading ourselves to his whims.

What boggled my mind was the fact he needed more incentives to inspire a murder. That cryptic first motive regarding the wishes and all of a sudden, he's sending us these mysterious videos that are somehow going to entice us further. Who was that couple that was in my video? Are they related to me somehow? Were they people I knew before I lost my memory?

"Well I'm going to go take a shower," Lou hopped out of her seat happily, "See you guys later!"

The roleplayer skipped merrily out of her room, carrying a spare set of clothes from her cupboard with her and exiting the room.

"I think I should head to my room as well," Yumeji lazily smiled, yawning as she stretched towards the glass ceiling, "I need to go grab my clothes as well….*yawn*...thanks for the sleepover."

The oneirologist walked lethargically out of the bedroom, opening the door and closing it behind her quietly, leaving Wayne and I by ourselves, the awkward silence between us grew as I was unsure of what to say.

"So…." I nervously broke the ice first.

"We should really go take a shower too," he pinched his nose, sniffing the air, "Stinky Kaz is smellier than a tuna fish! Hahaha!"

"W-Wha?" cocking my head baffled, as I sniffed my armpits as well, "Oh...you're right..."

"Last one to the bathroom is a rotten egg!" the knitter jumped from his sitting spot, all of his energy culminating in a mad sprint that left me with whiplash.

"W-Wait on me!" I called out to him, but to no avail.

I fumbled to stand up, the circulating blood had yet to set in my legs as I felt the pins and needles tickle my bones. I sluggishly exited the roleplayer's room, closing the door behind me as Wayne bolted out and headed towards his room, almost as if he forgot to turn off the oven. Sweatdropping at his sudden energetic future career at track and field, I walked over to my room, swiped the Monopad over the sensor and headed inside.

The salty breeze from last night swept through my room, as it's cold embrace tingled my senses. I kept my pajamas from last night on, grabbed a new set of clothes to change into and headed out of my room. I stared at the oddly broken clock inside and was still creeped out by the twitching hands. If anything set a bad precedent for what's to come, it was how morbidly childish this entire situation was and whoever's sick idea it was to give a young boy this kind of decor.

"I wonder how the others are doing?" I thought, puffing my cheeks as I sighed deeply, "Remember what Terrence said…..take things one step at a time."

Continuing to keep my breath intake in check, I left my room, hearing the door unintentionally shut behind me as I saw some of the others skulking about, particularly Lev who was making the rounds with delivering each of the outfits he made for the others.

The fashion designer carried around different pieces of clothing with him, banging on doors like a travelling salesman as he started off by knocking on one of the girls doors first. I saw Ushio grumpily rub her eyes, giving Lev the death glare as she nearly swatted him away with the door frame. The surfer received her outfit, but didn't seem at all happy judging from the sour look on her face. She slammed the door behind him as he went around knocking on more doors, unphased by her rude greeting.

I spotted Astatine, this time in their octocopter form hovering above my head and scanning the area with their green like sensor. The ethical hacker seemed preoccupied, so I didn't want to bother them straight away, so I left them to their business.

Stella, Iena and Aphrodite stood outside the girl's bathroom, holding toothbrushes and spare clothes in their hands. The pageant queen seemed the most impatient, near the end of the line, she wore a white top with three pink "kiss me" words written on the front, black pajama bottoms with pink kiss marks as the design and a silver sleeping mask above her head. She tapped her foot and looked about ready to throw a hissy fit with the manager of this place, probably not used to waiting so long.

The pub manager and judge both conversed with each other, Stella worse for wear from her exhausted appearance, loose purple bun and crumpled white pajamas with black abstract flower print with a pink silk nightgown and slippers to complete her look. She was not as upset as Aphrodite, but seemed just as eager to get inside as the other two girls.

Iena was the calmer one of the trio, chatting with the pub manager about something I couldn't overhear, wearing a light blue t-shirt and grey yoga pants, very simple sleeping wear compared to her usual attire. She didn't seem at all fussed over the bathroom situation, but was generally annoyed by having to be in between two girls who were both ready to call it quits and force their way inside.

The boys bathroom on the other hand, had no lines in sight, which seemed to be what bothered the three girls even more as Torakusu barged out the bathroom, steam pouring from inside and wearing a fresh set of clothes and carrying his dirty black pajama top and bottoms with him. The sniper winked at the three girls, who all seemed ready to lunge at his throat given that his charm didn't seem to assuage their irritation any less.

"Yo Kazumi, morning," I turned to see Sato hailing me out, carrying his toothbrush and wearing his long sleeved shirt and pants from his normal look as his pajamas.

"G-Good morning Sato…" I greeted the lifeguard with a shy wave, "D-Did you sleep well?"

"Eh, it was alright," he shrugged, seemingly in a better mood than yesterday, "Are you doing well yourself?"

"Umm…" I didn't know what to respond with, "I guess...I d-did have a fun sleepover with Lou, Yume and Wayne."

"Glad to hear it dude," he patted me on the back, "Still, I hate having to do what that bear wants. Regardless I'm sure things will turn out fine today. I have a good feeling about it."

His words sounded reassuring, if anything he made things sound less intimidating than what they currently were. He was the older brother figure of the group, which I guess fit with his talent and his overall attitude. But should I really trust him though? No. I shouldn't have that mindset, I need to give him more time, before putting judgements on the others, it's not fair to them if I keep mentally backtracking on what I think about each one of them as if I was some highschool gossip.

"Well look at you two," a snide voice entered the mix, belonging to Akio, wearing dark blue swimming trousers and a thin black vest, his athletic form was even more visible without his suit on, "Chatting it up like old friends now huh? How nauseatingly charming," his confident smile creeped me out as he approached us.

"Do you always wake up in such a shitty mood, Akio?" Sato rolled his eyes at the gambler, clearly done with his attitude, "Couldn't you at least try to be civil?"

"Only on days where I'm not feeling lucky," he chuckled, casually responding despite the immediate tension, "I'm just commenting is all, no need to get so snippy right off the bat."

"O-Oh…" I mumbled out, afraid to speak further out of sheer safety, "I see..."

"What was that? Come now, speak up little man!" Akio raised an eyebrow, glaring down at me with a dirty look in his eyes, "I'm waiting for your apology, my time is money after all."

"I d-d-didn't say anything!" I yelped out, feeling the anxiety building up from within me.

"Dude, leave him alone," the lifeguard extended his arm in between us, "You wouldn't want to start a fight given the circumstances now would you? Don't be such a dick."

"Heh, it's just too easy to mess with this little brat is all," Akio snorted, relaxing his muscles as he carried his fresh set of clothes in his arms, "Just remember to watch your backs you two."

The gambler brushed past us, hitting my shoulder as I nearly dropped my stuff, the general hostility radiating from his presence was unsettling and given how unapologetic he seemed to act towards the others so far, I guess judging him prematurely would not be an unwise assessment. What was his problem with me and the others?

"Ignore him Kaz," Sato put his hand on my shoulder, reassuring me, "He's just a sourpuss is all, no need to worry with his antics."

Unsure of what to think, Sato and I headed to the bathroom. We passed by the girls and saw Vivienne wheeling herself out with a faint flowery scent wafting as she passed by us. Moriko emerged from the misty girls bathroom as she hid amongst the steam, making a swift exit as I noticed her makeup was gone and her contacts were off, revealing her dark brown eyes which looked dazzling compared to their usual solid black look.

Stella and Iena both rushed inside, leaving Aphrodite even more pissed off than before as she grumbled expletives under her breath as she brushed back her long blonde hair. Unfortunately for her, Takara jumped out of nowhere and surprised her, causing the pageant queen to drop her stuff. The sailor heartily chuckled as the Aphrodtie stared icy cold daggers, wishing she could get out of that predicament as fast as possible.

Sato and I made our way inside the bathroom, opening the door as we saw Akio currently showering inside one of the shower stalls, his clothes on a nearby metal rack as we didn't pay it much mind. The less time we spent interacting with him, the better in my books.

"I'm gonna go use the toilet first," the lifeguard said, "You go on ahead and shower, Kaz."

"Alright…" I nodded, heading over to the stalls and resting my clothes nearby on a small rack next to the towels.

I disrobed and headed inside, letting the water splash on my skin as I felt it's warm hug wrap me up in a steamy, wet embrace. Apparently, people who take longer and warmer showers tend to do it because it helped to relieve their stress and emulated the same feeling of an affectionate human's embrace. I don't know where I heard that from, but I felt like I was being called out for some reason.

After a few brief minutes, I rubbed some soap and cleaned my hair with some fancy tropical peach and hibiscus orange shampoo, scrubbing my scalp clean as I let the suds drip to the floor. I finished rinsing myself clean, turned the valve off and grabbed the nearby blue towel and began wiping myself down. I exited the shower stall and grabbed my clothes from nearby, noticing Sato entering the second stall and burping to himself, with Akio still inside the shower room and humming a tune to himself.

"You look worse for wear," a mischievous voice said, belonging to Sakai who was still wearing his pajamas, pink bunny printed pajama top and bottoms, which seemed to be a running theme with all the pajamas I've seen so far, "I bet you probably haven't seen the sun in years, judging from the lack of color in your skin."

"O-Oh Sakai...good morning," I anxiously waved to the hair stylist, his long blonde hair was messily styled and his effeminate looks made that even more apparent from how oddly excited he was.

"Were you just done in there?" he asked, furrowing his gaze into a smug expression, "I wouldn't mind using second hand soap, but I hope you saved me some hot water in there for little ol' me."

"I'm n-not sure…." I awkwardly answered, heading over to the mirrors, whilst drying myself off and staring into the mirror.

"If you are lying to me, I will come and get back at you silly~" he teased cheerfully, booping me on the nose, with an almost malicious smile that would drive anyone insane just from looking at him.

The hair stylist headed inside the stall I just used and without looking like some weirdo, I trained my gaze at my sullen appearance in the sink mirror, pinching the pale, borderline emaciated, skin that clung to my body. The insecure feelings I already had amped up even more, seeing that everyone else was either averagely thin or was as fit as a fiddle. I stared at my reflection, almost scared of the person I was and the amnesia made me feel twice as worse, as if I were impersonating someone else.

"Oh my word, what are you doing, Kazumi darling?" I turned around, still half naked and clinging on my towel as Lev walked in behind me, watching me watch myself in the mirror and pinch at my skin.

"O-Oh uh...nothing…" I blushed nervously, feeling the instinctive response to cover up my twig like body, "Just changing…."

"That's not what I saw, sweetheart," he looked unimpressed with my white lie, approaching me, "Look into that mirror, tell me what do you see?"

"I uh...a person?" I said, perplexed by his odd question, "W-What am I supposed to see?"

"Kazumi, I wasn't born yesterday," he put his hands on my shoulders and looked me in the eye, "I can tell that you feel ashamed of your thin and sickly appearance." He then turned me around as we both saw each other in the mirror, " If I may be so bold as to say. You shouldn't compare yourself to the other boys here."

"I w-wasn't- uhmm…" I was too baffled by his correct deduction to really fight it, "I suppose you're right…"

"I don't blame you for feeling that way," he chuckled plainly, brushing back a strand of hair from his face, "Society has always put a negative stigma on body images of all sizes, especially with regards to young boys. It gets mostly buried under all of the articles about feminine beauty and plus sized women."

"Is it w-wrong to feel like this?" I asked the fashion designer, scared of what his next response would be, "To feel like a stranger in your skin?"

"Not at all, some people have been in your position before, both men and women," he mentioned, "Some feel that society puts too much pressure on boys to uphold these manly standards, to have all those rippling muscles and dashing good looks. Society even thinks women should have curvier bodies and bigger breasts. But if you ask me, that's all a load of bullshit."

His words felt kind, even if he sounded like he was lecturing me on his soapbox for a brief moment. I had no idea why he was ranting to me, but I felt like he was encouraging me regardless.

"So what do I do?" I asked him, introspectively brewing on his words.

"Personally, if you got it, flaunt it," he winked in the reflection, "But in your case, I wouldn't worry too much about it. You're young and have your whole life ahead of you, letting yourself live up to other people's high standards and expectations is a very unhealthy mindset to have, Kazumi."

"I see…" I looked back at my appearance once more, "Thanks for the advice, Lev."

"We can talk about your fashion sense another time," he added on to the end of his brief lecture, "Just remember, you are amazing in your own way, don't let anyone else tell you otherwise."

I nodded in acknowledgement, feeling a bit better about myself as I saw Akio coming out of the shower, with one towel wrapped around his waist and the other wiping his head, revealing his toned abs and muscle definition in his arms and torso.

"Although, it is to window shop once in a while, hehe," Lev chuckled,"Tata~"

The fashion designer disrobed, heading inside the shower after the gambler and giving him a once more sizing up glance. The gambler removed the towel from his head, ignoring me as he grabbed his clothes and began changing in one of the bathroom stalls. I did the same, but hid behind one of the wall corners, putting on my shirt, pants, vest and tying on my bowtie.

I then took one more look in the mirror, my clothes hiding most of my ghastly looking physique, and closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths. Realizing how awkward it was just being inside there with all the showers running, I exited the bathroom and headed back into the hallway.

I saw that the girls have all left the waiting line, some of them must have already finished or just entered inside by the time I was done showering. The quiet hallways seemed like a luxury, now that the brief solitude sunk in and I could move on with my day, but I needed to grab my things from Lou's room as I forgot my backpack and teddy bear in there.

I walked over to the roleplayer's room, knocked on her door, hoping she was inside and saw her door slightly open from earlier. The temptation to sneak inside was intoxicating, but I had a good reason for entering, so I decided to psych myself up and I walked on in, keeping the door slightly ajar as to not arouse any suspicion from the others.

As I sauntered inside, I noticed her room was the same as it was before, with the pillows on the floor all messy from the sleepover and the blankets all in disarray. I knew I left my things near where I slept, so I searched there first. I threw the blankets and pillows to the side and spent a good few minutes looking like an idiot searching for an easily conspicuous backpack and small teddy bear. Why was I bothering to look for these things in the first place? It's not like they actually belonged to me, so why did I feel a great sense of urgency and frenzy amidst looking for them?

"Kazzie? What are you doing?" Lou's voice interrupted my hasty search, tapping me on the shoulder as she seemed to have not made a sound as she entered her room.

"L-Lou ummm...it's not what it looks like!" I blushed anxiously, waving my hands in front of me like a cartoon character and getting flustered, "I uh…"

"You were looking for your stuff you left in here?" she put her finger to her lips mischievously, "That's all you had to say silly pants, there's no need to hide things from me," she skipped over to near her vanity, "We're friends after all, aren't we?"

"I uh….I'm very sorry for the confusion I caused," I apologized profusely, bowing as if I were a handservant.

"Oh you are just too adorable," she smiled, her eye twitching slightly, before replacing it with a smug smile, "Here you go, I kept it hidden so no one would steal it, that's all."

She handed me my things, clutching the teddy bear in her left arm, holding the outfit Lev designed for me along with the bear in her left hand and the backpack by it's straps in her right hand. If I didn't know any better, I'd assume she was a regular schoolgirl on her way to preschool given the way she's acted and dressed. She may be a tad eccentric, but she seemed to mean well, even if we met under such dire and inappropriate circumstances.

"T-Thanks…" I shakily received my belongings, adjusting the backpack around my shoulders, holding the clothes and grasping the soft fur of my teddy bear, "You're s-such a good person, Lou…"

"Oh?" she put her sleeved hand over her mouth, almost about to say something before something cut her off mid-sentence.

 **DING DONG DING DONG**

Another announcement that reared its ugly head back into our regular lives. We both turned to the monitor in her room, a sense of deja vu lingered as the bear once more appeared on screen, this time with Inuyari giving him an intense shoulder rub.

"Ahem! OoOoh~ that's the ticket," he moaned into the microphone, as it seemed the dog was able to get a notch in his mechanical joints, "Change of plans you miserable brats! I'm moving up the time of the dinner formal and we're making this a brunch formal instead!"

"Mhm, I know you like it like that Monnie," Inuyari chuckled flirtatiously, "Oops the mic is on, gotta keep it pg-13."

"Just keep kneading and shut up," he growled at her, as she continued, "Anyway, you silly urchins have about an hour and a half to get dressed and ready, I hope you ladies don't mind a speedy makeup challenge. So hop to it!"

Once the announcement was cut off, I could hear some footsteps stomping from outside in the hallway and possibly someone screaming at the top of their lungs in a very shrill voice.

"Oh dear…." I gasped, overwhelmed by all the sudden developments happening at once, "What were you going to say, L-Lou?"

"It can wait until later," she put her finger to her lips, "I have to get ready quickly, so skedaddle Kazzie!" she began shoving me out of her room.

"H-Hey!" I wriggled around as the roleplayer kicked me out of her room.

"I gotta get dolled up, alright," she blew a kiss in my direction, "No peeking~"

She closed the door behind me with a swift shut and I was left by myself, awkwardly standing around with a bewildered expression on my face, as if someone just told me some shocking news. In that moment of stunned hesitation, I spotted some of the others running helter skelter to their rooms and the bathrooms, dropping what they were doing and rushing to get ready.

Knowing there was a time limit, I rushed frantically to my room, swiping the sensor and rushing inside to get changed. To be honest, I wasn't quite sure how things were going to pan out, but I was just as worried as everyone else, if it wasn't made obvious before.

I rested my stuff on my bed, disrobing out of my normal clothes and looking at the full sized mirror, observing my appearance in all of it's pasty glory. Despite Lev's encouraging words, I couldn't help but feel twice as anxious, now looking at my thin and almost skeleton like frame. I could almost pass as a ghost or a skeleton if I wore the right costume. I remembered his words from a few minutes ago and shook my head, pushing away those thoughts as I headed off to change.

I unraveled the creme plastic over the outfit and was greeted by a very fancy suit that looked just as high fashion as true to Lev's word. It was a designer-like tuxedo that consisted of a dark black long sleeved button up along with a cream white clip on bow tie, a dark purple finely tailored jacket, dark purple slacks that looked finely pressed and I noticed a black pair of polished dress shoes next to my wardrobe.

"Who left those there?" I scratched the back of my head, bewildered by the sight of them, "Oh well, I shouldn't fuss with that right now."

In the spirit of getting ready, I put on the formal wear, buttoning up the black shirt all the way, adjusting the bowtie around my collar, slipping on the purple jacket and then finally putting on the pants, zipping it up and loosening the belt around my waist. I then removed my shoes, still keeping on my black socks and slipped my feet into the new dress shoes.

"Did I do this right?" I thought to myself, looking back into the mirror and feeling a bit weird in these fancy clothes, "Oh well, no time to complain."

I then fashioned my hair clips back into my messy black hair, clutching my teddy bear in my arms before noticing that something was missing. I looked at my teddy bear and found that a piece of the ribbon around its neck was cut short. Unsure of how that happened, I ignored it and left my backpack in my room, only pocketing the Monopad in my right pants pocket, before heading back out.

As I exited my room, I noticed a few of the others heading out as well, all getting dressed as it seemed that some of the guys were already in their formal wear.

"Hey Kazumi!" Terrence noticed me, he was already prepared wearing a black tuxedo with a golden bowtie around his neck, polished black dress shoes and a red rose fashioned into his coat pocket, "You're looking fresh, my guy!"

The communicator's warm smile was a welcome sight amongst all the chaos. He looked good in a suit, and I was a tad jealous if anything.

"H-Hey Terrence…" I waved to him, "T-Thanks….you uh...look fine..I mean great too!"

"I appreciate it, dude," he chuckled, patting me on the back, "But man, I didn't expect things to get into full gear so soon, it's been a while since I've worn a suit like this, usually it's for a special event, but it feels like wearing new skin almost."

"Mhm…" I nodded, almost fully aware of the new sensation as well.

"Hey guys!" I saw Wayne running up to us hurriedly, wearing a white dress shirt with a red necktie around his collar, dark jeans and his usual sneakers, "Looking spiffy! You two are like a bowtie duo!"

"Hahaha! You look alright yourself Wayne," the communicator laughed, noticing the knitter's casual formal wear, "I was just on my way to the dining room when I saw Kaz here as well. Why don't the three of us head off there as well together?"

"Okay!" Wayne eagerly jumped for joy, "Come on you two, before the others beat us there!"

The two of us both followed behind the knitter, I felt strangely comfortable in both their presence, almost as if I've known them for years. I didn't know what it meant to have friends, but is this the same feeling if it's with people I've only known for a few days at best? Or am I just clingy?

"Hey Kazumi? Did our talk yesterday help you?" Terrence remarked inquisitively, "I know it's forward of me to ask, but I would love your opinion on it. For future clients if possible."

"O-Oh, your advice was uh….actually really h-helpful Terrence…." I shakily nodded my head, smiling awkwardly, "T-Thanks…"

"Anytime dude, and please call me Terry or T, whichever works," he smiled brightly, giving me a thumbs up.

"Alright….Terry," I giggled nervously.

As we both walked along, I saw some of the others walking behind us. Yoshikazu, Stella, Sato and Vivienne all walked as a unit, or in Vivienne's case wheeled alongside them, all dressed in their own formal outfits.

The auctioneer wore a white button down shirt, black trousers and black leather shoes on his feet, along with a black suit jacket and green tie around his neck. He had that ruggedly handsome look to him, accompanied with his facial hair and flowing silver hair, he looked so cool.

The lifeguard's outfit was a lot more ocean like with a sky blue collared shirt with his regular long sleeved shirt underneath, along with a black pinstripe vest buttoned up all the way, along with formal black pants and shoes along with his fingerless gloves. Sato's look was a lot more casual than Yoshikazu, but both of them looked just as naturally charming as the other.

Stella wore one of her white buttoned up shirts with a purple vest top over the shirt with black trousers, the same black trainers on her feet and the same necklace and earrings for accessories. The pub manager looked similar to how the others dressed, but with a more feminine maturity to her look that she pulled off perfectly.

Vivienne, on the other hand, wore a black, silver embroidered evening gown and fancy black flat mary janes on her feet. The trader's look fit with the other three's simpler looks, but she looked even prettier as it meshed well with her natural beauty. I hope that didn't sound weird to say about someone I've known for a short time.

Ahead of us, I spotted Lou, Iena, Dragomir and Moriko. The four of them looked wildly different from each other, almost motley in that sense. Lou wore a pink knee length dress accompanied by white stockings, black mary janes on her feet and a black panda ear headband atop her head.

The roleplayer looked very cute alongside the others, but contrasted heavily alongside the doll maker. Moriko wore a mermaid style dress with a low cut black base, red sheer sleeves with lace designs going through them, along with a red belt around her waist and bright red stiletto heels. What made her look even more mysterious was that she wore a black and red, complex looking mask that covered the left side of her face, very Phantom of the Opera like in nature.

Those two looked like complete opposites, but as for Iena, she wore her usual three piece suit from before. The same light grey pants, jacket and vest with a blue dress shirt along with her black pumps. If anything Iena looked stunning, even though she was literally wearing the same thing as she normally did, both her and Stella had very mature and professional business woman-esque looks to them.

Dragomir on the other hand, wore a light brown two piece suit with a long sleeved shirt that didn't hide his muscular frame whatsoever, along with black dress shoes and a light brown ascot hat atop his head. He looked way different than before, like an overly formal newspaper boy or some kind of 1920's bodybuilder.

These contrasting looks were all unique in their own ways and they all looked so cool. Eventually, we all made our way to the dining room, and everything looked just as fancy as it did yesterday evening.

The tables were all covered in white tablecloths, the cutlery and napkins were placed neatly around each table. There were multiple trays of food all lined up on a long stretch of rectangular tables, all covered by silver covers with extra forks, spoons, knives and clam shaped napkins. The tables had these lovely white and blue flower vases as the centerpieces and the sea view from outside gave it that underwater restaurant vibe that made it look more like a VIP section of a five star restaurant.

"Sweet! It looks like everything is ready!" Terrence commented, "I'm going to reserve us a table, be right back."

"Cool beans," Wayne cheerfully smiled, "Hey Kazumi, I'm going to go talk with Lou and the others, catch up with you in a bit."

"Alright…" I replied, watching him skip off to the roleplayer who was more than happy to see him as she hugged him tightly.

"Greetings Kazumi," a female voice said, I turned to see Astatine, now in their android form Asta wearing the same clothes as before.

"O-Oh hi Asta…" I greeted the ethical hacker, still getting used to their new form, "You look really nice…."

"This form of mine always wore this outfit," she cocked her head, with a confused smile on her face, "But in human terms, that is meant to be a compliment, so I thank you greatly."

"H-How are you g-getting used to being in this new f-form of yours?" I asked, fixing my suit jacket.

"It's such a perplexing experience, although I've gotten used to the basic functionalities," she explained, "I've been trying to learn how humans interact with each other, both casually and personally, now that I have this new form. I've had some really interesting experiences thanks to Torakusu, but the others seem quite worried for some reason. Did I do something wrong?" she looked like an innocent child asking if breaking the flower vase was a bad offence.

"I'm s-sure they'll understand…" I nervously chuckled, worried by what the sniper was really teaching her, "Have you seen the others come in yet?"

"Negative, they have yet to arrive," the hacker said, "Although I did see some of them running around as if there was trouble afoot, is someone in danger?"

That question seemed to bring nothing but bad news all around. To be honest, as fun and upbeat as this party was supposed to be, it felt nothing short of troubling, given the circumstances and I also didn't feel as if anything was going to really work out. I wanted to stay positive, but there was a nagging feeling in my gut that I just couldn't shake for the life of me.

"I'm not s-sure…" I vaguely answered, dubious myself as to what's going to happen.

"Well, I suppose that I should make use of this formal brunch and learn more about human social interaction," she winked at me with a placid face, "Salutations!"

The ethical hacker walked over to one of the groups, as I spied some of the others already inside. Nomi and Kimiya seemed to have already been here before, as I just noticed them inside.

The gardener wore a white button down shirt with a formal gray jacket over it, along with a gray skirt that went down to her knees. To keep her look the same, she wore her mask over her mouth and the same hiking boots as before, but clean of mud and leaves. She seemed to be sitting by herself on one of the tables, eyeing the flower vases with a bored expression on her face as if she were silently judging her handiwork.

The ice sculptor on the other hand, seemed preoccupied with pushing a beautifully sculpted dolphin splash ice sculpture. He tried his best to center his work to make it noticeable to the others as he angrily mumbled to himself the entire time. He was dressed pretty formally as well, opting for a classic black and white tuxedo and black shoes along with a black bow tie around his neck. A very classy and timeless look/

"Sorry everyone! We just wanted to be fashionably late!" The double doors were swung open, revealing both Aphrodite, Sakai and Lev, the three of them announcing their presence as the others looked on.

The pageant queen wore a light pink sleeveless high-low dress with a sweetheart neckline, with a silver belt around her waist and silver heels on her feet. For accessories, she was like a shimmering star, wearing gold pearl drop earrings, silver cuff bracelets around her wrist and a gold dove necklace around her neck.

The hair stylist wasn't wearing his dress, but instead chose a white long sleeved dress shirt with a bright pink tie and plain black jacket, pants and what looked to be fashionable heel boots on his feet. I didn't expect him to wear something like that, but I didn't really want to know what he was thinking nor really wanted to invest in further heart attacks to know.

The fashion designer wore a fancy dark pink suit jacket over a light grey long sleeved dress shirt with a sparkly gold bow tie around his neck, a pair of dark pink dress pants, dark brown ombre pointed toe dress shoes and the same crystal snowflake earrings in his ear and the silver bracelets around his wrist.

"Ah, it seems we are fashionably 'early' in fact," Lev seemed disappointed with his sudden outburst, "My goodness, this is so embarrassing…"

"No worries Levvie," Aphrodite reassured him, "We're still the best looking ones here by far!"

"I feel a bit overdressed," Sakai snickered, "Maybe I should have worn a lovely dress instead," he seemed a bit too proud of himself for that remark, "I always found these hoity toity arrangements so droll and unnecessary."

"Oh you look fine as is Sakai," Aphrodite rolled her eyes, "Don't be a pouty puss."

"I'm glad you three could join us," Yoshikazu greeted the dynamic sparkly trio, "It seems we are missing some people though. Are they alright?"

"Oh about that," Iena interjected, "Yumeji said she's still a bit tired from the early wakeup call, so she's resting in her room and Torakusu said he had something he wanted to research first, before coming to the party."

"Ah I see," the auctioneer adjusted his tie, "But what about-"

Before he could finish his statement, someone almost kicked down the door behind the four of them. It seemed that Takara was the truly fashionably late one as she wore something I never pictured she'd wear in a million years. Her hair was fashioned into a pretty waterfall braid and she was attired in a navy green satin dress, the skirt slightly flared out to her knees with a delicate string of pearls around her neck and a bunch of expensive looking silver jewelry around her wrists and fingers. Navy lace tights cinched around her legs with silver high heels and a silver clutch bag in her hand.

Out of all the looks I've seen so far, she was by far the most stunning one out of all of them. My mouth was agape as I saw her vibrantly strut into the dining room, with the others looking at her with shocked looks on each of their faces, especially from Aphrodite. Lev was smirking confidently, probably because he made her the dress and Sakai seemed impressed with his work given he probably styled her hair as well.

"Ahoy mateys!" her aggressively energetic presence clashed heavily with her gorgeous look, "Pardon the late arrival, was trying to fit myself into this very tight dress!"

"Takara! Wow," Dragomir seemed extra excited to see her from how wide his eyes bulged out, "Ya look like a million bananas!"

"Aye, thank ye gorilla lad!" she heartily laughed.

"How dare you upstage me!" Aphrodite seemed eager to pick a fight with the sailor, "Levvie, why did you make her look better than me!? This is such a fashion fail on your part!"

"Now now darling," he tried to quell the pageant queen's anger, "We all look amazing in our own ways, not just because I made these stunning outfits, but because we each have our own assets and charm."

"What a nice way to say she looks better than primadonna over here," Sakai mischievously giggled, "Such a smooth talker you are, cotton candy head."

"Guys please, can we not do this here?" Stella stepped in, sensing a fight on the horizon, "I know things aren't the best right now, but can you please keep it civil for just this once, please?"

"Whatever, I'm still the best looking one here," Aphrodite crossed her arms in a huff, adamant on her stance.

"Oh boy…" Yoshikazu rubbed the sides of his head, "Ahem everyone, let's all have a fun time! I know things aren't the best, but let's enjoy the celebration for as long as we can!"

"Hey, where are Ushio and Akio?" Sato asked, noticing the surfer and gambler's absence.

"Oh, Ushio seemed to have something up her butt," Lev explained, shrugging his shoulders, "I just handed her, her dress and she snatched it from me, not saying much of anything before slamming the door in my face rudely."

That made sense, out of all the people here, she was one of the more vocal ones who despised the idea of this party to begin with, so I didn't blame her for not coming.

"Akio didn't seem interested either, so he's off doing his own shit. Probably jerking himself off in his room," Kimiya clicked his tongue, smirking to himself, "I swear that guy is a freak in his own right."

"Kimiya please, let's not discuss anyone's private business behind their backs," Iena cleared her throat, reproaching the ice sculptor "For now, we should all eat, we're probably all starving since this morning. Dig in everyone!"

With that, the party was underway. Things seemed to be working well so far, Monotide nor Inuyari seemed to be anywhere in sight and with everyone accounted for, things seemed a lot less grim. I sighed a breath of relief, hugging my teddy bear as I kept staring at it, seeing everyone enjoying each other's company as they all lined up to gather their food.

"Hey Kaz, over here!" Wayne called out to me, over by the buffet line, "The food smells great!"

I walked over to where the others were, grabbing one of the available plates atop the pile and admired the large spread of food available to us. The food itself looked like something straight out of a movie set, each plated elegantly on fancy silver trays.

For appetizers, there were three varieties of soups, mushroom, pumpkin and tomato. The large salad bowl was filled to the brim with luscious multicolored vegetables, tossed around with croutons and gleaning a shiny caesar coated dressing. There were baskets of toasted baguettes, with butter and jam packets off to the sides along with garlic onion rings and cheesy mozzarella sticks.

For main courses, the main highlight of the evening, there was grilled chicken with fancy herbs dressed in a sweet smelling garlic glaze, sizzling well done steak bathing in greasy juices and tender crispiness and for the pastas, there was a seafood shrimp lobster one in a giant ceramic bowl and a vegetarian tomato roasted one with salty herbal scents competing with the sweet garlicky scent. For a less casual option, there were mini cheeseburger sliders resting atop each other, barbeque wings on a large platter decorated with celery and carrot sticks and a large bowl filled with tortilla chips with three kinds of dips, salsa, artichoke and a creamy white sauce.

The drinks weren't as diverse, which included iced water and the same sickly sweet punch that made me vomit earlier. I wasn't touching that punch with a ten foot pole, so I might stick with just water instead.

The desserts were the best looking by far. Fancy puddings ranged from chocolate to caramel flan, chocolate strawberries attached to fruit skewers of pineapple and oranges, chocolate eclairs, creampuffs and two large cakes, one german chocolate and the other a fluffy white icing cake with pretty edible pearls on the top.

"I see you drooling over there, hah," Terrence smiled, noticing me dazed from the amazing buffet, "I recommend trying the cream puffs, I helped make them, you know."

"We should be thanking Iena and Stella too," Vivienne remarked, wheeling herself around the buffet line, "They did most of the heavy cooking, so you all better show your appreciation for their hard work."

"Oh it's nothing," Stella warmly smiled, she looked to have been extra proud of her cooking, "It's just that I'm used to helping my parents around the pub back home, that it's become a second habit almost."

"You shouldn't sell yourself short like that Stell," Iena nudged her shoulder, "Although I am pretty proud of how well the cakes came out, those were a pain to make."

"I'm sure they all taste wonderful!" Lou grinned, plating two eclairs on a separate plate, "I can't wait to dig into these sweet treats!"

"I concur with you panda girl," Moriko added two steaks to her plate, drowning them in the greasy juices, "This a feast fitting for the darkness itself! I, the daughter of darkness, am humbled by your generosity and am not worthy of such bountiful fruits of labor!"

"I have to agree as well," Sato smiled, despite the doll maker's weird compliment, "I probably will try at least one of everything, heh!"

"Hey Kazumi!" Wayne looked at me, "What are you gonna get?"

Looking at the wide spread in front of me, where do I even start? I grabbed a pair of silver tongs and grabbed a tender piece of grilled chicken, plating a side of seafood pasta to the side and adding one cheeseburger slider to my plate. I felt comfortable with this small plate of food, and headed to find a table, unsure of where to sit.

"Follow me," Terrence patted me on the shoulder, directing me over to his table, "You can eat with us, Kaz!"

"Oh t-thank you…" I smiled at his offer, walking over to his table, noticing that Nomi, Dragomir and Wayne were there as well.

"Hey Kazumi!" Dragomir waved to me, eating a large piece of steak with a fork clutched in his beefy hand, "You look sharp, like a skinny purple coconut tree!"

"Uhm...thanks?" I sat at one of the chairs next to Terrence, "You look good yourself, and you too Nomi."

"Thanks…" she softly spoke, seeming happy with that compliment as she turned to her plate of salad and vegetarian pasta, "You don't look so bad either."

"Lev's the one who m-made this…" I chuckled awkwardly, "Umm...should we save some food for Yume and the others?"

"Nah, I'm sure they'll come on their own time," Terrence waved his hand at that statement, "Besides, I'm surprised nothing has happened so far given that everyone is in the same room together."

"What do you mean by that T?" Wayne asked the communicator, slurping his tomato soup like a five year old.

"I don't think we should really talk about it here," he shook his head, "We need to put it past us and enjoy this brunch."

"Agreed…" Nomi nodded her head, jabbing a chunky piece of salad, lifting her mask up a bit to eat the food.

"W-Why don't you take off the mask, Nomi?" I asked her, confused at the impracticality of the act, "Doesn't it bother you?"

"Nope…" she said coldly, her mouth moving through her mask as she ate the food, "I'm just not comfortable taking it off is all…"

"A-Alright…" I left that line of questioning and used a knife to cut into a piece of chicken, "Mmmm~ This is so juicy!"

"I helped Stella prep and grill the chicken," Terrence proudly chimed in, "I suggested a nice garlic rub and she was more than happy to do so, although my fingers now smell like garlic cloves."

"Hahaha that must have been hard to wash out, " Wayne laughed at his joke, "Lou Lou and I made this place look ten times more fun," he pointed to the blue and white pennants and streamers all over the walls, "I wish Mori helped more, she seemed quite busy with her "voodoo" dolls."

"She's a weird one that girl," Dragomir chomped on his large forkful of steak, "But I'm happy that all the heavy lifting is done. That was a fuckin mess."

"Agreed," Nomi sweatdropped, she probably struggled to work with the others judging from her sleepy expression.

Seeing everyone banter and joke around with each other was something that felt both good and strange. There was this small gut feeling that nagged at me, but I couldn't quite understand why, it was a mix of both excitement as well as anticipation, but for what exactly? Did I somehow never feel this way before, did I…..have any friends before all of this? Was that even possible?

"Everyone may I have your attention please?" Yoshikazu stood up from his seat, raising his punch glass, "Now I know everyone's on edge with the recent motive and all of Monotide's empty threats, but we should all salvage what little reprieve there is in this brunch and just enjoy the rest of today before finding a way to escape!"

"A toast!" Iena raised her glass as well, "To everyone's hard work, cheers!"

"Cheers!" Everyone collectively raised their glasses and tipped them, I did the same with the others holding my glass of water up in my hand.

After that, the party was in full swing, everyone was happily chatting with each other, some of them went back to grab seconds from the buffet line and even munching on the desserts while there. A few minutes later, some random music played from the speakers inside the dining room, probably the two mascots doing, as some of the others got up and danced feverishly.

Lou then excused herself as she left the dining room, probably to use the bathroom as the rest either danced or continued to eat their food. Asta left as well, probably needing to do something important as well or to recharge her octocopter or something.

"Ooh I love this song!" Wayne jumped out of his seat eagerly, hearing a pop song play over the speakers, "Come on guys, let's go dance!"

"Sure, come on Kazumi!" Terrence said, tapping me on the shoulder.

"Okay!" I nodded my head, heading over with the others as I noticed Kimiya, Aphrodite, Stella, Moriko and Takara all doing their own variations of dances, "B-But I don't know how to dance?"

"That's alright, just move your body and the rhythm will carry you!" Takara saw and pulled me in, gyrating and twirling and stomping her heels on the ground.

I then moved my body, jerking it around to give off the impression that I knew what I was doing and moved my arms up and down. A few minutes later, the music picked up and the chorus escalated, everyone having the time of their lives as it seemed things were looking on the up and up. Things couldn't get any better…..

"I'm feeling a bit sleepy…" Terrence yawned loudly, "I guess the food is a lot more filling than I thought it was."

"Me too…" Wayne sluggishly danced, fighting the sleepy urges, "Maybe we didn't get enough sleep last night or something?"

"Hey, something's not right!" Yoshikazu announced, alerting everyone, "Look!"

I stopped dancing, startled by the auctioneer's voice as I turned to see some of the others feeling faint and falling to the ground one by one.

"W-What the fuuuuuu…" Kimiya drowsily fell down to his knees and passed out on the floor facefirst.

"Oh no….." Stella fell back in a nearby chair, passing out as well, "W-What's happennnnn…"

"Curses….damn you light bearers," Moriko sputtered out before dropping to the ground like a ragdoll, "You'll sufffff…."

One by one, everyone was dropping to the floor like flies, Wayne tried his best to fight the sleepiness, but slumped to the ground. Terrence soon falls down along with Dragomir, his face on his large plate of food and grease and Nomi was passed out as well, her head bent at an angle as she snored.

"E-Everyone...stay ca-" Iena stumbled around like a newborn calf, before she too passed out.

Vivienne tried to keep her eyes open, but fell back in her chair, her neck angled to where her hair touched the ground as she tried to fight it as well, but fell victim to sleepiness.

"Well this is a shitstorm…." even Sakai fell victim to whatever it was that made everyone pass out, "Fuuuuuuucking ass…" he dropped lighty to the floor.

"Sailing on the high seas~" Takara sang a shanty before she passed out, her body splayed out randomly.

"I feel faint...more so than when I went on that water only diet…." Aphrodite put her hand up to her head, as Sato tried to catch her, before he fainted.

"Who did….th-" Yoshikazu's slurred words couldn't be finished as almost everyone passed out from drowsiness.

W-What!?" I saw everyone's bodies on the floor, with myself standing over them like a giant, "Why is everyone asleep!? What's happening to them?"

"They're all passed out," a voice emerged from all the chaos,"Probably from some kind of sleeping drug."

I looked up from my frightened panicked state, the anxiety swelling up inside me as I looked towards the only other person, besides me, who didn't pass out from sluggishness.

"L-Lev!?" I gasped, feeling the heat rise to my cheeks, "W-What's going on!? Why are we the only two a-a-awake?"

"Isn't it obvious? Everyone's asleep…" he sighed, brandishing a sharp knife in his right hand, "Which fits all too perfectly for my escape plan."

"W-W-W…" I was too baffled to get the right words across, I stood there, scared out of my mind as I saw the fashion designer, standing up from his chair and looking at me with a dour look on his face as I just killed his pet or something.

"W-What are you doing!?" I shivered, shaking like a tree branch, "Why are you d-doing with that knife?!"

"I'm sorry it had to come to this Kazumi…." he slowly walked up to me, "But…." he gnashed his teeth together menacingly, "I can't give up on my dreams! Not like this, I cannot stand being here any moment longer!"

"O-Oh god…" I stepped back slowly, trying to get away from him, "Y-You're going to kill me…" my skin turned pale with fear and bile crept up my throat like a liquid cockroach.

"I'm glad you finally put the puzzle pieces together…" he looked almost disappointed, but there was an arrogant look in his eyes that spoke differently to his reaction, "But as a friend to a friend, would do me the honors..." he paused as the knife's sheen glistened in the light "..of letting me kill you so I can survive this godforsaken hell!"

Without much time to think, Lev ran up to me, lunging his dinner knife my way as the pointed blade scratched my right cheek just by a hair's inch. The blade searing through my pale skin as crimson blood dripped down my cheek slowly, his knife's sharp ends covered blood. He continued to swing his knife at me, trying to grab on me as I instinctively backed away with as much force as I can get, flailing around to escape from him.

"Stop struggling you anemic looking brat!" the words almost seemed painful for him, as he held back angry tears, "Why won't you just yield already!"

How is this real? I thought we were friends…..Why was he trying to kill me? I don't remember saying anything against him or slighting him in anyway? So why…..am I….going to die?"

I then tripped over one of the others unconscious bodies, falling forwards and shakily turning around, watching as Lev walked up to me. His knife was dripping blood on the tiled blue floor, some of his suit got stained when he tried to wipe it off.

"Lev...please, d-don't do this!" I cried out, my face welling up with scared tears, as I felt the pressure crushing me as his shadow loomed over me.

"I'm sorry…." he raised the blade over his head as I tried to crawl backwards.

As he raised his knife, a loud snapping noise distracted him as I managed to will myself to stand up. While the fashion designer was frantic and in blind with fury, I pushed him backwards and he began to trip over the others sleeping bodies, eventually falling on his butt as he cursed out loud, screaming loudly as things got hazy. I closed my eyes as I heard a very monstrous crashing noise hit the floor and I could hear glass shattering into millions of pieces as the shards flew all over the place.

What came next, sent my entire world spiralling into a confused frenzy. I slowly opened up my eyes, and what I witnessed would forever scar my already wartorn mind. A sight so ghastly and horrible that I had a small panic attack and shakily breathed in each valuable gasp of air. My heart rate skyrocketed and my body was numb to the bone, nothing could undo what just happened.

* * *

Resting on the floor was a broken, diamond chandelier. The crystal glass scattered all over the floor and bits and pieces of metal strewn across in random directions, along with a large splatter of blood underneath it's crystal base. And resting below the shattered chandelier was the body of the person who nearly took my life in one fell swoop, now on the receiving end of an even sharper and more deadlier blade.

Lev Moroz, the Ultimate Fashion Designer, crushed by the dazzling diamonds and speared by the metal rods, with pooling crimson blood underneath his freshly dead corpse.

* * *

 **Shallow Surfaces** ( **Daily Life** )

- **END** -

 **Remaining Students** : 21

 **Death Toll** : 1

 **Danganronpa…...**

* * *

 **A/N** : And there you have it folks, the first official murder of Salty Waves & Bloody Coral, woo that took absolutely forever to write and get, what a ride! I apologize for the extremely long wait you guys, but we're finally to the main meat of this story. I know I kept you all waiting, so I hope you liked this chapter, pardon if it seemed a bit rushed, but I had tons of fun making it nonetheless, despite the few hiccups in the road.

So tell me, what do you guys think? Did you expect this to happen? Did you know they were going to be the first victim? If not, I'm glad I was able to surprise you, but for those who saw it coming….nice job, you're already a better detective than I am! Kyoko and Shuichi would be proud. Bare with me, it's been a while since I've done this, so if things seem a bit obvious, this is the first trial, so I hope you guys like the twists and turns in the near future.

Anyways, if you guys have any theories or thoughts on how the victim died, I'd love to hear it in the reviews or in the PM's if you have any elaborate theories for me. For those in my Discord server, feel free to leave your theories there and for those who want an invite to my server who is reading my story, feel free to ask me for the discord invite and I will happily send it to you.

With all that out of the way, I had a blast writing this chapter, it wasn't easy choosing who will die first, I loved everyone's submissions and it was extremely hard in this instance, but unfortunately someone had to die, that's the nature of Danganronpa.

Special thanks to **RubyLeo** for submitting **Lev Moroz** to me, I know you're long gone from the fandom, but if you ever by chance happen to see this and read it, thank you so much for sending him my way and I'm sorry for killing him off so soon, whoops lol. He was a super fun character to write and I'm sad to see him go, but hey that's how a murde mystery series works.

That aside, I hope you guys are all happy and healthy during this quarantine and hopefully this chapter helped to ease the blues and get you guessing and on your toes with anticipation and excitement. Depending on how I do this, the investigation will come out soon, but it will take time due to my school work schedule and tons of homework, so bear with me everyone.

Before I go, I want to give a few shout outs to some friends of mine who also have SYOC that are open as of this posting:

 **Danganronpa: The Hopeful Lies We Tell** by **yours truly** , this is the remake of my old first ever story and the deadline is at the end of June.

 **Danganronpa: Remnants Of My Heart** also by **me** , my fourth SYOC and the deadline is in August.

 **For Whom The Rabbits Mourn** by **Sanity Requiem** , if you want to cry your eyes out at some heinous and gruesome death, she'll hook you up, she's a great writer.

 **Danganronpa: Fresh Meat** by **mandipokemon** , they're new to the SYOC scene and have already finished their first ever SYOC within a year, so show them some love too.

 **Danganronpa: Lights, Camera, Murder!** By **Dancing Cactuar** , this SYOC is a collaboration between him and I, so go give your OC to his profile and not mine, you'll love it.

 **Danganronpa: Etch it Into My Heart** by **RioA** , she's such a cool writer and she makes some interesting trials too, go show her fourth SYOC some support too.

 **Dead Zeppelin** by **Orlando Butler** , he has a fun way of writing character banter and I love his writing, go show his second SYOC some love too.

Other than that, I wish you all a good day, night, holiday or whatever it is you are celebrating and I hope you all liked this first murder chapter, I know I did OwO. The poll will be on my profile, so feel free to leave your guesses as to whodunnit. Happy reading my fellow readers, authors and otaku alike, I love you all so much and I will see you all next time.

Bye bye, keep on guessing!


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